There's a new King of New York and his name is Josh Hamilton. In last night's home run derby, Hamilton hit 28 long balls in the first round to set a new record. And, the crowd loved him. The Yanks were on their feet cheering on the underdog. And, while he didn't win, he definately stole the show.
The best part of it all is his story. His story about being the first draft pick and having his future ahead of him only to fall into the grips of addiction and depression. His story about his redeeming Savior who pulled him out of the pit of hell and gave him another chance. And, my favorite part as I was reading his story in ESPN magazine today was that he says
"You're probably thinking, Bad decisions and addiction almost cost him his life, and he wouldn't change anything? But if I hadn't gone through all the hard times, this whole story would be just about baseball. If I'd made the big leagues at 21 and made my first All-Star team at 23 and done all the things expected of me, I would be a big-time baseball player, and that's it.
Baseball is third in my life right now, behind my relationship with God and my family. Without the first two, baseball isn't even in the picture. Believe me, I know."
And, after Hamilton lost the derby, he stood in the middle of Yankee Stadium in front of the nation and gave all the glory to God.
Click here to watch an short audio report of Hamilton's story.
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