Athletes Who Damaged Their Careers With Drug Abuse
7. Darryl Strawberry, Baseball
Darryl Strawberry
Strawberry was the first overall pick of the 1980 MLB Draft by the New York Mets. He debuted in the majors in 1983, winning the National League’s Rookie of the Year award. From 1984 through 1991, he was an All-Star every year, producing at a high level. He was also a member of the Mets 1986 World Series team. After the 1991 season he was 29 years old and he had 280 lifetime homers. He seem destined for the Hall of Fame. It was not to be. After that season his personal problems caught up with him and he would not hit his 300th homer for another 6 years.
Strawberry later admitted his first experience with cocaine occurred in 1983, soon after he was promoted to the major leagues. He also admitted to drinking and occasionally smoking pot before before reaching the majors. The combination took a toll on his personal life, as he faced accusations of spousal abuse and tax evasion off the field. By 1987 he was drinking virtually every night and was using more cocaine. By 1990 Strawberry had checked into alcohol rehab. It was a vicious cycle. The alcohol and drugs led to erratic behavior, which in turn led him to more drugs after he was criticized. In the end, Strawberry would end up being suspended three times by MLB after repeatedly using cocaine. He finished with just 335 career homers, and was a shell of his former self once he hit 30. There was no Hall of Fame induction for Strawberry.
6. Vin Baker, Basketball
Vin Baker
Baker was selected by the Milwaukee Bucks with the 8th overall pick out of the University of Hartford in the 1993 NBA Draft. After four seasons with the Bucks, he was traded to the Seattle SuperSonics. Baker’s first five seasons in the league were strong, making the All-Rookie team his first year and the All-Star team in his next four seasons. In his sixth year, the 1998-99 season, there was labor strife and a lockout, which led to a shortened season. Baker later admitted that his binge drinking began during that year. He saw his weight balloon to near 300 pounds, and his game suffered tremendously. He was never again an all-star and never approached the statistics he put up during his first five years. After four seasons with the SuperSonics, he was traded to the Boston Celtics.
In Boston, there were reports that Baker smelled of alcohol at practice. His skill and athleticism had eroded and the team suspended him indefinitely, leading to his eventual release. Baker would go on to play for the New York Knicks, Houston Rockers, Los Angeles Clippers, and Minnesota Timberwolves before retiring. The stats tell the whole story. Baker was a force before his binge drinking, and an also-ran after it. A potential Hall of Famer, Baker became a poster child for the dangers of alcohol.
5. Dwight Gooden, Baseball
Dwight Gooden
Gooden was drafted fifth overall in the first round of the 1982 MLB Draft. He spent just one full season in the minors, debuting at the age of 19 with the New Yorks Mets at the start of the 1984 season. He would go on to win the National League Rookie of the Year award that year and set several rookie records (Ironically, he won one year after Strawberry). In 1985, he was dominant, winning a Cy Young and leading the league in all the triple crown pitching categories: wins, ERA, and strikeouts. He remains the youngest Cy Young winner ever. But he would never be as good again. His decline has been attributed to many factors, but the two main reasons are early overuse and cocaine addiction. In 1986 he helped the Mets win the World Series, but no-showed the team victory parade. The team announced that their star pitcher had overslept, but years later, it was revealed that he was on a cocaine binge.
Rumors of substance abuse began to arise during the 1986 offseason, which were confirmed when Gooden tested positive for cocaine during spring training in 1987. He entered rehab, which caused him to not start a game until June 5. Despite missing one third of the season, Gooden actually had a solid year. Gooden would go on to suffer several injuries over the next few season, during which his career declined significantly. In 1994, Gooden again tested positive for cocaine and was suspended 60 days. He tested positive yet again while serving the suspension, and was suspended for the entire 1995 season. Gooden’s playing career end in 2000, but he continued to have run-ins with the law over alcohol and drugs for the next several years. In the end, what once looked like a sure fire Hall of Fame career ended as just another player.
4. Roy Tarpley, Basketball
Roy Tarpley
Tarpley was selected by the Dallas Mavericks with the seventh pick of the first round of the 1986 Draft out of the University of Michigan. Tarpley made the All-Rookie Team in his first season and won the NBA’s Sixth Man Award the following year. He played for the Mavericks until October 1991, when he was expelled from the NBA for using cocaine, a violation of the league’s substance-abuse policy.
Tarpley would then play two seasons in Greece until he was reinstated by the league in 1994. But his NBA return was short-lived, as he was permanently banned from the league in December 1995 for using alcohol and violating the terms of a court-imposed personal after-care program. After being banned again from the NBA, Tarpley spent five years playing for professional teams throughout Europe. He possesses NBA career averages of 12.6 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. Tarpley applied for reinstatement again in 2003, but would never play in the NBA again. Becoming the first player banned from the NBA for drug use, and at an early age, garners Tarpley this high of a ranking.
