THE DARRYL STRAWBERRY STORY

DARRYL STRAWBERRY'S STORY OF REDEMPTION

Darryl will be the first to tell you his childhood was a real disaster, mostly due to an abusive alcoholic father who was prone to outbursts of rage. It brought real terror into the family. Darryl grew up in south central Los Angeles with his two brothers and two sisters. The anger from his father was mostly directed toward Darryl and his older brother Ronnie. One night when Darryl was 13, he and his brothers decided to take a stand. The confrontation escalated to include the police and the father was asked to leave, which left a mother to raise five children.

Darryl used baseball as an outlet to cope with life, and he was good at it. Baseball gave him a feeling of control and he vowed to not let anything ever control him. Despite the cocky attitude, his talent for the game was undeniable. After a notable high school baseball showing, the New York Mets drafted Strawberry right out of Crenshaw High School.

As his baseball career was getting off to a start he met and married his first wife, Lisa. As pressure mounted in the world of baseball, he turned to alcohol and drugs to have an outlet and escape. Soon he was introduced to cocaine which became Darryl’s strongest addiction.

Darryl’s peak was the World Series win with the 1986 Mets. After 3 more years with the Mets, he accepted a lucrative deal to play in his home town with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Darryl spent three seasons with the Dodgers, but his drug habit sent him to rock bottom. He was invited to a convention by evangelist Morris Cerello. He cried all through the preaching and responded to the call. Darryl recalls, “The power of God hit me, and when I got up, my belly was like a river.” Darryl checked into rehab and left his addiction behind.

After a season with the San Francisco Giants Strawberry thought his baseball career was over. Then he got the call from the New York Yankees. Darryl's career got a second wind. He married his second wife Charrise and won three more World Series titles with the Yankees. However, troubles arose as his drug habit resurfaced, bringing to the surface the deep anger and abuse which impacted his marriage.

At the end of the ’98 season, Strawberry was diagnosed with colon cancer which required chemotherapy and recovery time. Then after the 1999 season, Darryl's life worsened as he faced arrest for soliciting prostitution and drug possession. Consequently, he was suspended from the League. In the five years that followed, Darryl lost everything, including his career and his wife.

Darryl decided to attend a drug recovery convention where he met Tracy. Tracy could relate to Darryl, because she had her own struggle with drug addiction and saw his hurt, anger, brokenness and heaviness. The two became close friends and Tracy, being a new Christian, would pray and cry out to God for herself and for Darryl. Darryl soon knew it was time for a permanent turn-around. Strawberry recounts, “I just had to surrender. I had to get with God myself. I had to separate myself from everything and everybody. God was calling me, and it was either I was going to answer this call or I was going to die.”

Darryl reaffirmed his dedication to the Lord. This time, it was a lasting commitment. Tracy and Darryl married in 2006. After years of battling addictions, jail-time, alcoholism, emotional wounds, divorces, separation from our children, unforgiveness, bitterness, and other life controlling issues, Darryl and Tracy finally surrendered. Together they experienced a life changing transformation through the power of God and the process of change. They have devoted their lives to helping others do the same.