Doc: A Memoir
Dwight “Doc” Gooden debuted with the New York Mets in 1984 as a 19-year-old. It was breathtaking. That first season he won 17 games, lost just 9, and struck out 276 batters in just 218 innings. In his second year he was 24–4 and won the Cy Young Award as the National League’s best pitcher. In 1986, he led the Mets to a World Series title. But by then, Gooden’s world was busting apart. He was both an alcoholic and a cocaine addict. When the Mets had their parade to celebrate the series win, Gooden was alone in a dingy hotel room trying to straighten up after a bender. He went on to win 194 games but most came before he was 29. The drugs diminished what may have been an all-time great career. In his memoir, Gooden reveals a childhood marked by violence. But there was also love. Gooden learned to play baseball from his dad, who would spend endless hours with his son in Tampa’s parks. But once Gooden discovered cocaine, his life became an endless cycle of rehab, denial, and addiction. Amazingly, the rehab that seems to have succeeded was the reality television show in which second-rate celebrities are the focus. Gooden has been clean for a couple years now and works with others battling substance abuse. A harrowing cautionary tale. --Wes Lukowsky