Diamondback Jay
Psalms 23:1
I know it's early in the season, however already there's a story developing that may eat up headlines very soon-- the rebirth of Josh Hamilton.
As many know, Hamilton was one of the most heralded prospects in quite some time when he was drafted by the Devil Rays in the 1999 MLB Draft. Lauded as a 5 tool future superstar, Hamilton was considered to be one of those guys on the fast track to Cooperstown before ever playing a game.
Fast forward to 2007, and you find Hamilton now-- a far cry from what he was expected to be, now in the Red organization after the Devil Rays all but gave up on him, leaving him on the Rule 5 list. Obviously it wasn't the talent that the Rays gave up on, it was the off field issues, the drug problems and the indifinite suspension that MLB handed down after Hamilton again failed to rehab properly.
However, there seems to be light at the end of this tunnel. Hamilton is now Cincinnati's 4th OF (which will lead to plenty of time to showcase his skills, with Ken Griffey Jr. in a perpetual state of injury) after an exceptional spring where he hit .403. So far, his success has pushed over in to the early season, as he's currently hitting .500 with two homers and 3 RBIs. For a guy written off for dead, any steps are baby steps, but it truly seems like Hamilton may FINALLY have realized what he had, what he lost (which could be in the upwards of millions of dollars) and what he had to do to regain that billion dollar talent that he threw away.
We've heard plenty of "reclamation stories" gone each direction-- some great, some horribly wrong.. So this leads to my question.. Do you root for guys like Josh Hamilton, the reclamation project "bad boys" to turn their baseball careers around?
As many know, Hamilton was one of the most heralded prospects in quite some time when he was drafted by the Devil Rays in the 1999 MLB Draft. Lauded as a 5 tool future superstar, Hamilton was considered to be one of those guys on the fast track to Cooperstown before ever playing a game.
Fast forward to 2007, and you find Hamilton now-- a far cry from what he was expected to be, now in the Red organization after the Devil Rays all but gave up on him, leaving him on the Rule 5 list. Obviously it wasn't the talent that the Rays gave up on, it was the off field issues, the drug problems and the indifinite suspension that MLB handed down after Hamilton again failed to rehab properly.
However, there seems to be light at the end of this tunnel. Hamilton is now Cincinnati's 4th OF (which will lead to plenty of time to showcase his skills, with Ken Griffey Jr. in a perpetual state of injury) after an exceptional spring where he hit .403. So far, his success has pushed over in to the early season, as he's currently hitting .500 with two homers and 3 RBIs. For a guy written off for dead, any steps are baby steps, but it truly seems like Hamilton may FINALLY have realized what he had, what he lost (which could be in the upwards of millions of dollars) and what he had to do to regain that billion dollar talent that he threw away.
We've heard plenty of "reclamation stories" gone each direction-- some great, some horribly wrong.. So this leads to my question.. Do you root for guys like Josh Hamilton, the reclamation project "bad boys" to turn their baseball careers around?
