Two Stories Of Alcoholism

Bret Boone claims a bout with alcoholism forced a sharp decline and early exit from his baseball career.

Boone, 38, revealed that an alcohol problem was the reason he retired. According to Boone, the problem goes as far back to his peak years with the Mariners, but he happily reports that he hasn’t had a drink in seven months.

...Boone’s problems started in a more subtle matter, but it got to a point where he would drink 12 to 15 beers after a game. At age 32, for example, Boone recalls dinking heavily after a game and then going 3-for-4 the next day. But as he got older, Boone’s stats declined and he lost the passion for baseball.

“For me, it was an alcohol thing,” Boone said. “It wasn’t to the point where I was down and out. But it was to a point where I could see it was going there.

“I don’t want to make a big deal about it, but I was at a point where sometimes it was more important to me to go to a hotel bar after a game. At the end, it takes away your passion and everything inside that makes you tick. I’m not proud of it. I’m proud I took care of the situation before it got to a point where it could have.”

Call me a cynic, but it's altogether possible Boone faded from baseball because of abuse of drugs other than alcohol. Perhaps the kind that builds muscle and allows you to hit 450 foot opposite-field homeruns. Citing alcoholism - though a terrible disease - and being called a recovering addict is much more forgiving territory than being called a cheater who used steroids.

Max St. Pierre, a once heralded catching prospect in the Tigers farm system, also revealed a serious drinking problem in his recent past.

He began his career as a catcher. Nearly ended it, though, as an alcoholic.

“I drank all night, every day of the season,” Max St. Pierre said.

...After four seasons at Double A Erie, St. Pierre finally rose to Triple A. Instead of seizing the opportunity, though, his demons seized him.

“I started not caring as much,” he said. “My priority was drinking instead of wanting to be a baseball player. It happened more than a couple of times that I almost fell asleep in the bullpen because I’d barely slept the night before. “I lost my job because I was just partying. I wasn’t going the right way, and people finally found out.”

That sounds more like an addict's behavior than Boone's "alcohol thing."