Drug counselors differ on Strawberry's penalty

Mr. Strawberry flunked a drug test Jan. 19, his third violation of baseball's drug aftercare program; on Feb. 28, Major League Baseball Commissioner Bud Selig suspended him for one year.

The outfielder/designated hitter tested positive while under court supervision after being arrested a year ago in possession of the drug.

Different views

BY contrast, George Hutton, an intensive outpatient program counselor at Hope House in Albany, thinks a one-year suspension is a light sentence.

"I would've fired him," he said. "I hope he cleans up; but as long as he's got people around saying it's okay to use cocaine, he's going to keep doing it. You can't reason with a junkie. Drug addicts make everybody dance to their game."

Disease?

The universally accepted definition of disease, from an addict's standpoint, is "when I keep repeating [drug use] over and over despite negative consequences," Father Malecki pointed out. "Maybe once was choice, but the second might not be choice because there are certain people who, biologically, become addicted."

Mr. Hutton noted: "To say it's not a disease is heresy. It's treated as a disease, and for cocaine it's highly biochemical. Cocaine substitutes for the body's natural drugs."

Relapsing

"Instead of making these high-sounding judgments, [they should] take some time out to learn about addictions," he said. "How many recognize that relapse is part of the recovery process?"

But Mr. Hutton looks at Mr. Strawberry's relapse less sympathetically. "Relapse is dynamic, and while the relapse rate is higher for cocaine addicts, he's a professional rehabber," he said. "Darryl Strawberry did not do what he needed to do. The urges and cravings of the drug overrode his sense. He's incorporated relapse into his system."

Cocaine stays in the user's system for only 24 to 72 hours after use, and "if he was caught, more than likely he did cocaine the night before," Mr. Hutton said.

Lost chances

"That's an irrelevant, sour grapes comment," he said. "Let's keep our eye on the ball: This guy is a human being, whether he's Darryl Strawberry or not. Relapse is part of the recovery process, and you give an appropriate consequence."

Again, Mr. Hutton has a more hardened opinion of Mr. Strawberry's lost opportunities: "He's got everything I dream of, and he snorts it away. He's going to be doing this act for a long time. He's just another crack-head, and he's constantly failed because people have been baby-sitting him for too long."

Suspending him from baseball for one year won't make much difference in helping him to overcome his addiction because "baseball probably isn't contributing to his delinquency or relapse; it's people who hang around him personally," he said. "Someone gave him the drugs. You don't walk into the clubhouse and start snorting at your locker."

What next?

He would encourage the ballplayer to "call upon your religious, spiritual tradition, and it will make a difference in your sobriety," he said. "Acknowledge the Higher Power we call God."

Mr. Hutton also hopes Mr. Strawberry can find strength in a Higher Power, but his sobriety boils down to this: "He's got to get humble. He can recover, but he's got to pay the price. He's a coke-head who plays baseball, not a baseball superstar who uses coke."

(03-09-00) [[In-content Ad]]