DARRYL STRAWBERRY WILL MAKE GUEST APPEARANCE AT "THE JOE"!
Troy, NY - On Friday, the Tri-City ValleyCats and the Rensselaer County Heroin Coalition announced that they are partnering to host Darryl Strawberry for a guest appearance in the Capital Region on June 1st. The prolific big league slugger will be speaking to the Rensselaer County Heroin Coalition at the Bulmer Telecommunications Center at Hudson Valley Community College at 3 pm before visiting Joseph L. Bruno Stadium for the ValleyCats' 6:30 PM game against the Trois-Rivières Aigles.
"This important partnership with Rensselaer County will bring further awareness to the opioid epidemic," said ValleyCats Vice President & General Manager, Matt Callahan. "The Rensselaer County Heroin Coalition continues to play a key role in addressing this crisis in our community and we are happy to support those efforts."
Attendee registration details for the Coalition meeting will be released at a later date and Strawberry is slated to participate in the pre-game festivities at The Joe, including throwing out the ceremonial first pitch.
Darryl Strawberry spent 17 seasons roaming the outfield in the majors for the New York Mets (1983-1990), Los Angeles Dodgers (1991-1993), San Francisco Giants (1994) and New York Yankees (1995-1999). Strawberry was selected by the Mets in the 1980 MLB draft with the 1st overall pick and made his debut in the majors on May 6, 1983. During his first season, Strawberry notched 26 home runs with 74 RBI and a batting average of .257 en route to receiving NL Rookie of the Year honors. Strawberry went on to be named an All-Star eight times and won two Silver Slugger Awards. He played on four World Series-winning teams – the 1986 and 1996 Mets, 1998 and 1999 Yankees. Known for his offensive power, Strawberry recorded at least 20 home runs 10 times and at least 30 home runs three times. He led the National League in homers in 1988 with 29. In 2010, Strawberry was inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame.
Off the field, Strawberry's well-chronicled battle with drug addiction dated back to his tenure with the Mets in the 1980's, and included jail-time and three suspensions for using cocaine. Strawberry turned his life around after meeting his wife Tracy and finding his faith. In 2011, he and Tracy founded Strawberry Ministries and today they travel the world as ordained ministers sharing a message of hope.
"Rensselaer County is invested and worked to beat back the scourge of drug addiction in the county. We are excited to have an outstanding baseball star like Darryl Strawberry joining us to speak of his struggles and show there is a way to battle and win against addiction," said County Executive Steve McLaughlin.
Strawberry, who also frequently speaks about his challenges with drug addiction, was appointed in 2016 by the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA) to its Advisory Board. In 2016, the Strawberry's founded the Darryl Strawberry Foundation to assist people affected by autism. Strawberry, a two-time colon cancer survivor, has authored several books, including the New York Times best seller "Straw, Finding My Way" along with "Don't Give Up On Me" and "Turn Your Season Around".
These events are also supported by a variety of additional partners including Campito Mechanical, Greco Construction, Martin Electric, Siemens, and SRA Architects.
Season Twenty-FUN of ValleyCats baseball and entertainment commences on May 12th with Opening Day presented by the Rensselaer County Department of Health and a jam-packed Opening Weekend featuring Los Puentes de Tri-City and our first-ever Mother's Day at the ballpark! You can secure your seats today and be a part of the excitement by logging on to tcvalleycats.com or call 518-629-CATS.
