"The best there ever was"...

If you saw MLB's Home-Run Derby last night you may have noticed something familiar. The way Josh Hamilton of the Texas Rangers was hitting balls out of Yankee Stadium reminded me of Bernard Malamud's "Roy Hobbs" in "The Natural". But not only in prodigious, tape-measure obviousness, but because of Hamilton's life story.

Josh Hamilton was the number-1 draft pick by Tampa Bay in 1999 . He played minor league ball until 2002 when he was suspended by Major League Baseball for violation of its drug policy. While rehabilitating at home in Bradenton, FL, Hamilton became addicted to cocaine, heroin, and other drugs, which he took at the local tattoo parlor. In 2003 Hamilton disappeared from spring training and when he returned, manager Lou Pinella kicked him off the team and told him to go get his life straight.

During his hiatus, Hamilton was suspended indefinitely by Major League Baseball for another violation of their drug policy. He stopped using drugs in October of 2005 and was reinstated by MLB in time to prepare for the second half of the 2006 season. After taking extended spring training and playing in minor league games, he was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the Rule 5 draft. The Cubs then traded him to Cincinnati for cash.

In April of 2007 he made his debut against the Cubs to a 22-second standing ovation. He promptly lined out to left field. But only 8 days later he go his first hit, and his first home run in the same game. Edgar Gonzalez served him up.

He went on to hit another homer the next night and earned himself National League Rookie of the Month honors for April, 2007. He would finish batting .292 with 19HRs in 19 games.

On December 21, 2007 the Reds traded Hamilton to the Texas Rangers for stud pitcher Edinson Volquez and Daniel Herrera. Volquez is an early Cy Young candidate in the National League but even his strong first-half showing pales in comparison to what Hamilton has accomplished.

So far this season, Hamilton has logged 21 HRs and a league-leading 95 RBIs to go with a .310 batting average in his first 93 games. More than for his numbers, however, Hamilton may have defined himself with his prodigious display of power in last night's Home Run Derby. He set a first-round record with 28 homers and finished second to Justin Morneau in the finals.

Even though he didn't win, the fans, television audience, and the ballplayers all know he has solidified himself in the great and storied history of Yankee Stadium and Major League Baseball. Like Roy Hobbs, he earned a shot of redemption and has capitalized so far. All Hobbs wanted was for fans to say when he walked by, "There goes Roy Hobbs, the best there ever was." Could it be for Josh Hamilton?

WOD...
For Time:
Row 1,000m
20# Ball Slams x 25
Pushups x 15
Row 750m
20# Ball Slams x 20
Pushups x 20
Row 500m
20# Ball Slams x 15
Pushups x 25