I Am Excited And Terrified For The Doc Gooden And Darryl Strawberry 30 For 30
(Not sure if the video will play on phones, but it’s only available here)
ESPN MediaZone- The next installment in ESPN Films’ Emmy Award-winning 30 for 30 series will be “Doc & Darryl,” premiering Thursday, July 14, at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN. Directors Judd Apatow (“Trainwreck,” “This Is 40”) and Michael Bonfiglio (“You Don’t Know Bo”) will explore the lives and careers of former New York Mets superstars, the young flame thrower, Dwight “Doc” Gooden and feared power hitter Darryl Strawberry
When they were good, they were great; the biggest stars on a team that captured the imagination of New York City and won the 1986 World Series. But when life spiraled out of control for both men, Gooden and Strawberry inadvertently broke the hearts of Mets fans. “They were going to be our guys for years,” laments Jon Stewart in this evocative yet searing 30 for 30 documentary.
Reunited at a diner in Queens, the pitcher and the power hitter look back on the glory days of the mid-80s and the harrowing nights that turned them from surefire Hall of Famers into prisoners of their own addictions. Listening to Doc talk about missing the World Series parade down the Canyon of Heroes, or Darryl counseling others at his ministry, you can only wish that these two very different men had not followed the same destructive path.
If there is a 30 For 30 done about your team, usually either something really good or really bad happened to it. And we can definitely file this under the really bad category. Sure the Mets won a World Series in 1986 and had a great record in the 80s. But those teams were absolutely STACKED and seemed to leave a few championships on the table. I also feel like time has forgotten just how incredible Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry were when they were young.
I cannot wait to watch the good times, like Doc putting up a 1.53 ERA and 268 strikeouts during his Cy Young Award winning 1985 season at the ripe age of 20 (when he threw 276.2 innings, Jesus Christ the 80s were a different time). Just mowing motherfuckers down with an electric fastball and that murderous curveball dubbed Lord Charles, which was an all-time great pitch nickname.
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And then you have Darryl Strawberry, who averaged 31 HR, 91 RBI, and 28 SB per year before the steroid era from the ages of 21-26. Just eye-popping numbers to go along with a great performance on my favorite Simpsons episode ever.
Oh yeah, and he was nicknamed The Black Ted Williams, which was the most ridiculous nickname until Eli Apple became The Black Eli Manning.
I am also PETRIFIED of the bad times, like when Doc was at a fucking crackhouse in Long Island during the 1986 championship parade. And all the drug shit and personal demons both guys dealt with over the years that will likely resemble more of a depressing E:60 episode than a 30 For 30. Just snorting up the foul line type shit
Hopefully we can also get at least a smattering of stories about the rest of the 1986 Mets. Like The Scum Bunch, the booze/cocaine/cake party on the plane after the NLCS, and Kevin Mitchell ripping the head of his girlfriend’s cat off. Actually maybe they should save the 86 Mets uncut documentary for HBO. That will make it so much better.