Do This After Losing Everything | Darryl Strawberry

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And that's not why I wanted him back on the show. I wanted him back on the show because he's one of the most remarkable people. He's changed his life multiple times. He also loves Jesus, which is something that we share in common. And just, there's something happens when we get together that was a flow. It was one of the most shared shows of all time, and I'm hoping that's the case again today. The great Darryl Strawberry. Welcome back to the show. Oh, thank you so much, Ed. Man, it's so good to see you, man. It's been- It's been too long. It's been a couple years. You moved out of California, now to Florida. And you've had a heart attack and a bunch of other things. Yeah, all the good stuff. By the way, before we begin, he has a new book out called Another Life, and it's outstanding. And that's kind of what we're gonna talk about today. So let's start, let's go back. You've had multiple lives. In fact, you're lucky to be alive, right? I don't know if everybody knows this, but Darryl's been pretty public with the fact that when he played, he was this unbelievable player, but he had a good time on the side. So there was some drugs and some stuff and had some issues happen. Then once all that gets going, then he has colorectal cancer. We almost lose you then. And now, just in 2024, you had a heart attack. Yes, well, thanks for reminding me about the good time I had when I was a player, yeah. I really was a wild, wild man, heathen lifestyle playing here in New York City. It was wide open in the 80s. I was young, I was 21. So I experienced a lot of things and got caught up into a lot of things, but it didn't derail me from playing baseball because that's what I always wanted to do. So I knew how to do that, I just didn't know how to live. So it costs you later on in your life at some point. I always tell people that you can pick your sins, but you can't pick the consequences of it. And the reality is, is I had a lot of consequences that came with it. And so I paid a lot of price for that. And also for my health issues. I paid a big price for that. And it's just all part of life. Life is just like a journey, a journey that you go through. And I always tell people there's three phases of life. There's your childhood, there's your middle part, and then your end part. Which way you wanna finish? How you wanna finish your race? Well, my goal is to finish the race strong. I had all the things that I wanted to have in life, had all the fun and was at the top of the mountain looking down and realizing that nobody's really up there. Everybody pretends to be your friend because of what you have and who you are. But when the real reality comes and when things really hit, you'll find out what people are really like. And I'm grateful for that, that I was able to go through that and experience all that and really turn out to reinvent myself. Multiple times. Yes. Those people, one dude never leaves us. You and I both know that. But also like this book, you did, part of the reason you wrote this was your wife, right? I mean, how important has she been through this whole journey for you? Well, she's been the creator for everything, to help me really straighten out my life. She was the one that led me back into church. I sat for seven years going through discipleship because she was already there. She's the brainiac of the family. She's smart as ever, so she can create a lot of things and she had found her way and she was just waiting for me. And she started showing me the way, telling me, you got to pick up the pieces. You created it, you're responsible for it. You made a mess and you got to clean it up. Seem like I've had a little bit of this in my life, but nowhere near like what you've had. Like people love who they think Daryl Straub. They love the baseball player. Like they love the achievements. They love what comes with being your friend when that's all there. Seems to me like she loves you. Like, you know what I mean? You know the difference, right? Not the image of you, but the you with all of the difficulties and the trials and the tribulations. She actually loves you, which is different than loving the idea of somebody. That's so true, Ed, because I had nothing when I met her. So we were talking about, I was in debt, in trouble, in addiction. She was pulling me out of places and telling me that God has a plan for your life. I said, why don't you, you know, God just leave me here and don't let me die. And she pointed her finger at me and told me, you're just not that lucky. Really? Were you, you didn't tell me that last time. Were you really okay with dying at some point? Were you that, were you almost killing yourself, do you think? Like almost subconsciously with the partying and the difficulty that you went through? Were you at a point where you were like, I'm okay? Most addicts do. Most celebrities end up dying because nobody ever tells them they have a problem. They always kind of sweep it under the rug and that's why you see so many of them die, like Whitney, Prince, and it's sad. Elvis, you know, you go down the list. Matthew Perry, you know, you go down the list of people and people don't want to tell them, you know, you really need help. You really need to go in a different direction and seek after some serious help. Are you going to die? I think a lot of times people don't think the drugs are going to kill you. At one point, at some point, it's going to kill you. You can only take so much. The heart can only take so much. And I was at that place many times where I just felt like, just let me die out here. Let me just die. I was never concerned about the great Daryl Strawberry, a baseball player. I think more people were concerned about that. I was concerned about my mother and Tracy became just like my mother. Cause I said, God, if you really want me to live, send me somebody like my mother. And she was the one that came. My mother was a wonderful woman. And why I say that because she raised me right. It wasn't like she raised me wrong. I'm the one got out there in the lifestyle, the atmosphere and just continue to live a sinful lifestyle. And I think people don't realize it's a price to pay. And especially when celebrities live it because we've been given so much and I'm a strong believer in to whom much is given much is required. There's a great requirement out of it. And I wanted to always be the right person because I saw it in Gary Carter, my teammate. And I saw it in Mookie Wilson. I saw two guys throughout my whole career actually really live according to the right way. Really? And that was amazing to see that cause Carter already knew he was going to the hall of fame. Right. He'd already qualified with the Expos. Yeah. Right. He's already been a great baseball player. And I was wondering, why is this guy so happy? Why is he not struggling? Why is he not drinking? Why is he not messing with other women? And it was because of his faith. And he didn't like throw it up on anybody. Yeah. You know, it was just a guy that lived it every day. And that was special and Mookie too. And he was very quiet and he just lived his life in a special way. I was like, man, that's what I want. Well, can I tell you brother, I feel like, I don't even know why, something right now, I'm even a little emotional about it. I do feel that way about you. I just want you to know, I don't think you give yourself enough credit. First off, it takes a whole lot of courage to be as transparent with your sins and mistakes that you've had. Most people, especially in the public eye, never would do that. And I want to give you credit for that because I think it connects you with people, especially the people listening or watching this, millions of people, that maybe they can turn their life around too because you did. So that's number one. But number two, when I met you, you came to my house that first time, you were Darryl Strawberry when you walked in my door. I mean, I'm like, oh my gosh, this is this guy that was one of the greatest players literally I've ever seen in my life. And by the time you left that day, and to right now, when I think of you, baseball's about fifth on the list of things. Like, I want you to know that when you come up in my mind or people bring you up, they know that we're friends, it is actually how much you love the Lord that comes up first for me in my life. I mean, it's the thing I think of first. It's like, oh, and he also played baseball. And the reason I mentioned that to you is, I'd like you to, this is a hard question, but there's a lot of people that find themselves right now, their identity was tied to something other than maybe who they really are. They were, they've had a divorce, and somehow that marriage was their identity and they're feeling lost right now. Or they had a business that failed. Maybe they were an athlete and it's gone away. But something's left them that their identity was tied to, right? You had that happen in your life. How does someone remake themselves and find themselves? Because, you know, you not only were a player, you were one of the greats. That identity leaves, that's kind of like a crisis for a lot of people. Who am I without baseball? Who am I without that relationship I was in? Who am I without my money or my business? For someone listening to that, what would you say to them? I would tell them that failure is a part of life. It's just like succeeding. If you can accept the part that you're gonna have some failures, that means you gotta learn how to get up and you can't quit. And I think a lot of that comes from where I grew up. I'm from South Central LA. So you see a lot of different things when you're growing up in those neighborhoods. And you see a lot of guys over there having failure and never get up. And I know that it's a part of life and it's a part of life playing baseball. You're gonna have some failures in baseball. And if you can accept that, you will never be successful. And that's the way I grew myself by playing baseball. Okay, I gotta balance this out. It's the same way with life. You have to balance it out. You have to understand that you are going to have some difficult times, some trials and tribulations. And my wife is so incredible. She taught me about that. It's like, you have to get up. You can't just lay here. Cause if you lay here, you're gonna die with anxiety, depression, loneliness. You're gonna start feeling that way for yourself. And I started to realize that even more when I got connected to the vine. And when I mean, when I got connected to Jesus, when I got connected to the word, I started realizing that so much more about accepting my shortcomings, more than anything, instead of saying, well, this is just the way life is. This is the way it's supposed to be. No, that's not the way it is. Because when I started understanding Christ, I started understanding that he had completed the task for every last one of us. So why am I sitting here and saying, this is the way it is? Had he not done that for us? And if you don't know that, then you don't know that you can get up. Cause he got up. Right. That's right. So he taught us how to get up. And I think that's been the greatest success that I've ever learned is giving God my heart and not my ability, not my skills, not my education, not my conversations, but my heart. And when that happened, I realized more than anything that I had became a different person. And I started to be able to accept anything that would come through my household, we're gonna get through it. Wow. We just had a group of people over the house for dinner the other night with these amazing steaks. They all raved about them. They were all butcher box. It's become part of my routine. One thing I always try to prioritize is getting enough protein through the week. It's so much easier when you already have highly sourced quality protein options to cook. Instead of figuring out at the last minute, they deliver 100% grass fed beef, organic chicken, wild caught seafood, all sourced to standards they can actually tell you about. They've already done the research, made the tough sourcing decisions, so all you have to do is decide what's for dinner. I recommend them almost everybody I talk to, so I'm doing it now on the show. 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That's because you're not just listing products, you're building real connections with buyers. Consistency pays off. This isn't a side hustle type thing. It's a real path to building something that lasts. Whatnot buyers spend more than an hour. a day in the app. So they're not just browsing, they're engaged, they're buying, and they're coming back. So you go live, show off products in real time, and turn what you love into real income. So search Whatnot, W-H-A-T-N-O-T, in the App Store. Download, and you can start selling right away. Isn't it amazing we're sitting here talking about this? I mean, for a lot of people too, myself included, every once in a while I'm doing this show I'm like, why would anybody listen to me? You know what I mean? Why would people listen to me? That imposter still floats up for me. The other thing I always think of is, I think a lot of people feel like they're disqualified in life from having a second act, or having another life, based on mistakes they've made previously. So like, this sin I've had disqualifies me. My divorce disqualifies me. This failure disqualifies me. I think for a lot of people, the fact that they've just maybe always felt average or invisible means they're disqualified for now. You've had multiple lives. I have to think that at least occurred to you at one point, like, oh, now I'm going to talk about Jesus. I'm going to be a minister. I'm going to preach. Did you ever feel like, hey, these past transgressions, mistakes disqualify me? Because I think a lot of people feel that way. I felt that way when he was calling me, and I was like, no, you got the wrong guy. I was like, no, he's like, I got the right guy. I said, don't you know what I've done? God says I know what everybody has done. And I said, I'm not qualified. He said, no one is qualified. I qualify to call. And when you start to learn that, that he's not looking and condemning you for your shortcomings, he knew you were going to fall short. I think most of us don't really get that. You know, when they go back to Genesis 3, Adam and Eve in the beginning, you know, one man opened the door for all of us to fall short. And then he brings his son, Jesus, through the gospel, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, that would bring grace and extend grace. See, that's what we fail to realize more than anything. It's the grace of who he is. And he extends it to everybody that freely accept it, but you have to accept it. And then you got to do something with it. Because I always tell people grace is something I don't deserve, but he gives it to me anyway. And that's what another life is about. Another life is not about me. It's about what he's done through me. And when you get to that position where he has done the work through you, he's going to send you. Now he's going to send you for others. See, I think a lot of times, Ed, in this life, we think it's really truly all about us. I agree. What we do, what we have, you know, I've fallen short. Well, welcome to the club. It's part of the whole journey of everybody's falling short. And I always tell people, pick yourself up, have some faith, and trust God and let him lead your life. Let him lead you the way that he wants to lead you. Because a lot of times we want to lead ourselves. You know, we have this, we have this place of us, which I call the body. And it's our flesh. And I always want to tell us what to do. And you have to get connected to the spirit man of yourself so it can lead you and guide you. Because God wants you to be successful no matter what you're doing. If it's in business, if it's in ministry, if it's wherever you're at, he wants you to have that. But don't create this place inside of you that it becomes all about you. Gosh. You know, you keep your focus on his will, his principles, and he's going to always take care of you. You know, he's going to always, he's taking care of me through cancer, twice losing my left kidney, should have been dead through addiction, diabetic, you know, heart attack two years ago. I was going through this process of having a heart attack. And I'm rolling into the operating room to have surgery. My wife is going the other way. And I'm making this deal with God. I said, God, you know what? I went either way. If you want to take me now, I'm okay. I'm good. Because if I'm finished with your work, then take me. I said, but if you really want to leave me here and let me see, because they retire my number next year, I'd really like to be there. Right. And there I am making a deal with him because of the fact of knowing that he cares for every last one of us. And all he's asking for us is just care for me. Just follow me. You can do all these other things. When you were reeling in there, you were really okay if that was it? I was okay. Because you knew you were going. I knew I've done everything. I've had everything. I've seen it all and done it all. There's nothing that I haven't experienced in this life. And I realized that if this was it, I'm okay. Wow. It would have been different 10, 15 years ago. Yeah, it would have been different. Yeah. And everybody said, well, you know, that's kind of pretty selfish. No, it's not. No, it's not. When you've been and lived the life that I lived, and now you live on the other side and you live in faith and you walk, you will be ready when you know that. Because I know that living here, it's crazy, chaotic. Everybody's against each other on every issue and every story. And that's not the way it's supposed to be. We all are people. We all have a date, a date of birth and a date of death. So whenever he decides my time is up, I'm not going to miss it. I mean, the kids and the wife, if I'm gone before her, they're going to miss me, but I'm going to be on the other side. It must be nice to stick around to get your number retired like you did. It was. It was really cool. I mean, because I had a lot to say. I had a lot to say to the fans. The platform was there for you. Yeah, the platform was me to go back and tell the fans of New York City, you know, that I'm sorry that I left the Mets because that's where I grew up. It wasn't anything personal about the Dodgers attacking them. People were trying to make it out. I said, no, this is where I believe I became a baseball player when I played here in the city, because these fans, they get after you. And I love that, you know, because I'm like I said, I'm from from South Central. So I love that. I love that when people dig into me like you can't, you can't. And I was just like, oh, wait a minute here. Let me show you. I can't. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. Don't yell out Darryl because he's going to get you. Well, that didn't bother me. The Red Sox fans did that. But it was the Bulls when you when you own when you suck. Yeah. When you're two for 30 and they born, you suck. And I said, OK, well, I'm a hit two off the scoreboard. And then I'm going, oh, you want me to come out for that curtain call? I'm not coming out. See, I wish I could have hit two off the scoreboard. I wish I could have just decided I'm hit two off the scoreboard. I'd hit two right back to the pitcher that walked me out first base. And so one thing about you, even if someone's not a believer, you know, this thing you said is really true. You know, a lot of people that feel sorry for themselves, a lot of actually say you're really an ego. You know, you're the same as an arrogant person when you're down because you've made the world about yourself. And one thing I've even observed in you, I've observed in my own life, too. But I want you to speak to this. Well, if I'm right, tell me if I'm wrong. Tell me. But one thing that happens when you start to serve other people, when you get out of you for a second, in your case, in my case, most the time we're we're trying to do kingdom work. Even if someone doesn't even know what that means, they're watching this, just serving another human being. You know what happened to me? Skills and talents that I did not know I had began to get revealed to me in that service. You actually learn more and discover more about yourself when you get out of yourself and serve other people. Like your ability to speak and preach. I doubt you knew that when you were a baseball player. Has this happened to you? Like you've discovered some skills and talents about yourself as you've started to serve and get out of worrying about yourself all the time that you didn't know before. It's the best gift that we give to ourself. And when we finally get out of ourself and serve others, it's better to give than receive. A lot of times we think it's all about receiving. Me, me, me, me. I want this. I want that. But when you when you give something new happens inside of you, there's like a shift, there's a transformation of all kinds of different things, because now you start to see other people and you become grateful. You start to have love, compassion, sympathy for others because you have been through your own valleys of life. But now you're not there anymore and you see other people that are there and down and you're telling them there is a way. There's a way to not put all that weight on yourself and allow yourself to be free and go out and share. When you share your experience, strength, and hope, you become better. Because somebody on the other side needs to hear something that you have to say as far as your business and your struggles or whatever you've been through, because everybody's going to go through struggles, even if you're in business. It's all part of it. You're going to have some times where it just it just fail you. And that's the same thing that I learned so much in baseball. And that's why I incorporate that in my life, because I learned that from playing sports. The challenge is real and the challenge of life is real, too, at the same time. But you have to do something different and go, you know, go see somebody else. Somebody's homeless. Go to a homeless shelter, go somewhere to a hospital, visit somebody. When you walk out of that place, you're going to feel different inside. You're going to start really activating what's inside of you more than anything. And I think a lot I think a lot of people don't realize it's more inside of us than we could ever imagine. I could never imagine that I would become a public speaker and travel 270 times and stand in front of thousands of people preaching the gospel. I never went to school. You know, that's not what God is looking for. He's looking for a person that makes himself available. Oh, wow. You make yourself available for others, not for yourself. I had already done what I'd done in life. Yeah, I had already achieved it. Right. So there was a new life that he wanted to give me. And it's such a better life. It's such a peaceful life. It's such a real life. It's not pressure. It's very comfortable. When I first started, I was like, oh, man, this is not for me. I'm quitting just like anything else. Are you serious? Of course. And he just kept God just kept reminding me it's not about you. It's not about you. Every time I say I'm done with this, I'm done with traveling. I'm always it's not about you. And I got it. And when I got to that place, I realized it was about others. Well, you you've developed this ability since the last time we talked. You say a lot in a few sentences like to unpack what you just said. Number one, that phrase I'd not heard that before. You activate a part of yourself. I think everybody ought to reflect on that. Like if you'd like to get to know yourself better and find out more about you, you're going to do that when you're serving other people. The other thing you said about availability, there's that saying, especially even in sports, the best ability is availability, right? Making yourself available to people. I want to know the truth like in shoot straight. Does it feel as good? And don't give me the Pollyanna thing. Give me the straw, like the real answer. You hit one off the scoreboard in the postseason, that feeling in your body, you're running around the bases. 50,000 people are going ballistic. You just dominated that picture, that moment in your body. Be real here or being on stage in front of 300 people at a church that no one's even recording it. And you're giving your testimony and your message. How do those compare to one another? Well, let me say let me say the the part of the baseball is amazing. Running around the bases after crushing the ball off the scoreboard, especially in big games, playoffs and stuff like that. And everybody's going crazy. Chills run all through the body because you know that you have just made a moment. And it was a fantastic moment. And you're making a lot of people happy. And that is one of the most incredible feelings that any athlete would would get when he does something like that. Basketball, football, baseball, hockey. We all have that same feeling that rush. Yeah, you know, I did it. And you like to be in that moment. Great athletes love to be in the big moment. Yes. And I always loved that. But when I stand in the pulpit, it's totally the opposite. Anointing falls upon me and it doesn't belong to me. It's God's gift. And I can't really understand it a lot because it's supernatural and it just flow because I always prepare and always prepare. I think I prepare the message that I want to give and the Holy Spirit will lead me and he'll guide me. He'll speak through me because the thing about it is the baseball is going to give all these fans a great feeling inside of what I just did hit that home run. But the spirit is going to come and it's going to affect someone else and touch somebody. And it is the most incredible thing that I've ever experienced in my life because I know it's not me. Right. I was like, I don't I don't have this. You know, I know it's I know it's coming from the source. And and it's just incredible. Some of the things that actually come out of me and I'd be like, man, did I say that after like, no, you'd be like, no, you didn't say it. Keep going, because I sometimes I want to deviate, go the other way and go, no, go this way. And I'm very sensitive to that. And I've learned that it took some time to be able to realize that the education is is his and he knows who's sitting there. He knows what needs to be said at the moment in time. That's very. very different I Know exactly what you're talking about. Yeah, I do I know exactly and by the way for someone listening to this like I get let me say one thing to what you just said What you just said is in my own life the most true thing Someone's ever said on the show to me because the more I actually get out it people always ask me when I'm on stage How does that happen? I'm like, I have no idea right and the more I make it about me the week It's almost the more I make it about me. It's almost like giving me kryptonite or your Superman Yeah, but when it's not me, it's unbelievable. You almost look like Superman because it's supernatural What's happening right you and a lot of people listening? Oh, that's great. You're both on stage speaking This same thing happens in that precious conversation with your daughter at breakfast in the morning If you get out of the way and be prayerful and be present with her and just love her Let those words flow through you the horrible problems in your life that you're going through right now the trials and tribulations What if it isn't about you? What if there's gonna be a mess out of this mess? There's gonna be a message that you're gonna have someday just really reflect on what Darryl just said right there because I've lived that in My life too. That was an honest answer. This turns out scoreboard is still pretty good. Yeah Scoreboard is great. Yeah, I think the I think the whole thing with most people is they don't get out of the way and they don't Listen, you know, I think one of the most crucial components of our local communities are small businesses And that's why I love today's sponsor fair It's easy for independent retailers now to stock products from over a hundred thousand unique brands worldwide It's perfect for planning inventory for the holiday season They offer curated wholesale products for home Apparel beauty food and more with streamlined ordering reordering and fulfillment fair reduces all the risks of testing new Products they do all the analytics. They have free returns on first orders with every brand so far fair has given more than 700,000 retailers access to over a hundred thousand brands sign up today and get 50% off your first Wholesale order up to a hundred dollars at F a I r e Comm slash my let go check it out. That's F a I r e Comm slash my let terms and conditions apply. 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That's right Start a free trial at Shopify comm slash my let that's Shopify comm slash my let When you say listen you've said that a few times today Do you hear something audibly like when you're talking about I'm talking a lot of non-believers or even some believers go I don't hear anything or so. Is it is it something is it a is it think thoughts that just come to you? Is it a feeling or is it actually audible? You'll hear something. No, I mean, it's supernatural spirit You listen, you know, you listen to what he's saying, you know, once you know his voice, you know, who's who's speaking? but it's just the same with my voice of My kids I'm not trying To live their life. I listen to them. I think that's what most parents struggle with They are a different generation Well, they're not like us. We Were we didn't have cell phones. We didn't have tick-tock. We didn't have this snapshot or whatever all these different things And they have that and you and you want to try to control them and tell them not to live that this is what they Live in and you have to allow them to go through it and figure it out for themselves But I always tell my kids I say You see that brick wall It's not moving Yeah, at some point you had you have to learn how to walk around it Hmm if you don't want to feel the pain of it walking into it all the time and that's all and I think that's Where a lot of parents will I want to punish him? I want to do this I won't do that. And are you are you creating this is a monster inside? Yeah, they're gonna resist Yeah, because they're gonna run back out there and they're gonna get a taste of everything and then they're gonna dive into some things that they Shouldn't well, I think being a father and and the husband I am today and the man of God that I am today, I I just live in action and I think a lot of times people don't live in their action of what's important because when you because When you're living in action people are watching you that's right And they're gonna always have something to say like they have towards you towards me Well, you're this and you're that but they don't know how you got to where you got. That's right They don't know all the hard work we put in to get to where we get They don't you think that stuff with your kids is caught not taught. They're watching you They're not hearing the things you're saying by the way, they're watching a lot than you think. How do you deal with that? You still catch flack from people. Do you still have haters when you played and even now like I Think for a lot of people literally the thing that holds them back the most in life And by the way, that means you're making it about you again is they're afraid of what people are gonna think I really believe that that is maybe number one on the list of what holds somebody back from reaching their God-given Potential is their fear of what some other human being is going to think about them and in your case You've had literally millions of people form opinions about you at different parts of your life probably even now still how do you deal with? I never cared Wow, even when you played even when I play your face just said that's true. By the way, I never said it I never I never cared. I mean, I never cared what the fact that media said what people said I knew My own ability and what I was capable of doing and that's all that mattered and just like I am today I know the ability what I'm capable of doing now And I'm not concerned, you know people say well, oh, well, they turn to Jesus they turn it. Well. Yeah Probably needed Jesus. Well one day you you're gonna need him One day you're gonna be calling on him when you land up in the hospital and you're sick and you got something going on Some terminal could be there coming up on you and you you land and you have no idea where you going. Hmm What's your message you left behind? See my mother left a legacy for her children. No, that's what this is all about leaving a legacy for my children That's why you wrote it I wrote it for more than for more of them and my wife and the dedication about people Yeah, and and going as places and and not judging people going into maximum securities Prisons and to love on people and people said well, how could you go in there? And they these guys murdered people and did this I don't I don't know what happened to them when they were a kid, right? Just like you don't know what happened to me. I don't know what happened to you I just know one thing that we all fall short of the glory and it doesn't mean judgment and those that have Judgment and those that can get on social media and be negative and say negative things Go check your own closet. I bet you got a Closet full of skeletons and if somebody threw them out there publicly, how would you handle them? You don't know how you would handle. I mean we That end up in the places like yourself and me and we were built for it. Mm-hmm I'm built for criticism, but I thrive on it when it's on your face when you say it Cuz that's the way I was when I played I was thriving when you was negative and boo. I was like, all right I'm gonna show you that dog anything, right? Like what is that? Do you miss that or do you have it somewhere else like one of the things that to get to where you got in? your sport You gotta be a dog. Yes, you're right and you got to be a competitor you do and you I mean The level of when you're around a dude like him you guys just so you know I think I'm a pretty competitive person, but my other like high-end I won't name them professional athlete buddies of mine Do they don't care what you're playing? It could be ping-pong tiddlywinks spelling bee. They want to beat you, right? They want to be competitive. So I know that is in you There's no way you were that great if you weren't like, okay, you're booing me I'm gonna hit one this off the board or that dude on that with the wrong lid on the on the mound out there I'm Larry this dude Do you still have didn't first off? Did you have that and do you have it now or did you have to replace it with something else the competition thing? Like I gotta think like I mean we always will have that because it was built inside of us because we created that you have to create that inside of yourself because If you want to win and you want to be a winner in life Nobody's gonna give it to you. You're gonna have to take it and it's just like a Guy hitting me with the ball. I'm going out to get you. Hmm. You know, I'm gonna I'm gonna show you with these knuckles, too That's the way I was when I played baseball It was just to make people understand. I'm nothing to play with But you know, I I will always have that and You know, I'm in ministry now, but people say well, where's your security guards and people? Yeah that you need around you I'm not afraid. I don't need ten people around me to protect me like that because you know, my mother taught me something about Life more than anything that it's not important to be important So I don't act important. You don't know. I'm just a normal human being that that has had great success playing major league baseball and had great failure and the public eyes and Now I Pick myself up. I didn't stay there because of what everybody else had to say. Mm-hmm and Here I am. I'm a survivor of of life. Yeah, you are It's just like what all of us are you have to survive here? There's a purpose and a plan for every last one of us, but we just have to figure it out What is my purpose? You know and Do you think by the way this thing about loving God because that dog in you is still there I think sometimes people think if a dude's like loves Jesus somehow like He's a wimp or he's got something because we rely on God doesn't mean in the real world We don't walk around as men and that we're not strong or a woman and I shouldn't even make that gender-specific Like we're still we're still men. We're still we're still strong. We're still fighting for our families We're not you have to plant seeds if you're gonna expect a harvest in your life, right? I'm praying for that harvest, but I know I'm supposed to be planting seeds every single day of my life I have part of this equation as well. Yes, I think what what most people don't know and most guys don't know And they think this week is it's no I'm free Yeah, I'm not in bondage. I'm not chasing after anything Most of the time you're chasing for Affirmation from everybody else I'm not looking for none of that. So freeing isn't it? Yeah, I did so much of my life as well That's that's just the way I live. I mean, I wake up every day. There's joy, you know, there's peace and I'm free inside. I'm not looking for anything. I'm just looking to do my father's will and Love people and care for others I think that's the most important thing that we all should understand when we Have been here and we have seen everything We realized I realized that everybody will not have the opportunity That I have had and you have had right, but they still have the opportunity Okay, they still have the opportunity to plug into that and Plug it and put that as a part of their life make that the centerpiece of your life and then Everything will work together for the good. I think people don't really realize that it's there. It's free I think you're right. The other thing there's an interesting I've never asked anybody this there's an interesting nuance to because like When you rely on God and you surrender your life to God, there's this part of you that you've given your life there, right? So like I I cast my problems to him. Hmm same time though. I know walking around the world I have to be a confident person. I have to believe in myself. I have to have strength of my Preparation and things like that. It's an interesting nuance as a believer, right and even for people that are listening to the two of us So I want to ask you about something. I watched the other day. I I was blown away by something you're on I don't know what I forget the podcast, but basically someone asked you who's the greatest baseball player you've ever seen You said Barry Bonds You said not even close. This dude was a freak show blah blah blah. I'm watching it I'm watching it and I'll take your word on that. But is there any part of you be real? Is there any part of you that thinks it's you in the ring before you answer it? The reason I ask that is I think you have to think in the world because you are you do have your father in heaven Has your back and you're with him, but I also think you have to walk around this life thinking like what you said I'm gonna hit two off the scoreboard. I'm not to be played with so one Where where are you in there? And what about that balance of self-confidence and belief yet reliance and surrender to God? This is a hard. This is a doozy, but I'm curious what you that's gonna always be there with me because I always When I ran out on the field, I was the best player. That's what I told myself. Yes. It's a matter who Of course, okay. Okay That's that's where that's why you there I'm not underneath anybody I could do just about anything that everybody else you do and the reason why I said Barry Bonds was the greatest player that I ever seen and watched because I watched him when he came up at a young age and I Saw the tools of a guy that could do it all and he could do it. Well, and he'll let you know, too and a lot of people don't like him, but I've always liked Barry and I like the way he Played the game. Mm-hmm. He played it knowing he was good. Yes, and if you don't play it knowing you you're good It's a different story. Okay, and that was the story for him. That was That's the story for me. That's the story for many of us that have played the games and the one that came before us, that set the table for us. So we had opportunity to be able to prove, not to others, but to prove to ourself. It's a self thing. I think a lot of times people don't have self-confidence in themselves. And guys like us, we do. We know what we want to do. We know what we want to accomplish. We know how to go get it. And that's the same thing people need to learn about life. When I got my life transformed and became another life, I had to go after it. I couldn't sit. It wasn't going to come to me. I had to do the work. OK, God said, I want you to be disciplined just like you was in baseball. And I got it. I know how disciplined I was in baseball. I had to train myself. I had to talk to myself. And that was the same thing I had to do when I was crossing over and having this transition of life. I had to talk to myself. I say, I got to be this. I got to be this way. But I'm not perfect. But I'm going to live it according to the way the principles are. And when you do that, and when you do that in baseball, you live according to the way the fundamentals of baseball, you're going to be successful. When you live according to the principles of God, you're going to be successful. Nobody can stop it. A lot of people want to stop people because they're not there. You've got to challenge yourself. It's inside of you. Everybody's got that gift inside of them. It's just when you decide to turn that gift on and say, OK, I can do this. I can do all things. Not some things. Some people want to do some things. But I always told myself, OK, I can do all things. But I never believed the fact that I would be this, who I am today. And that is what amazed me more than anything. What he's done with you in your life. What he's done. The education that he's given me through his word is far greater than I can ever imagine or think. Yeah, I'm really proud of you. Thank you, brother. You too. I'm proud of you too. Thank you. Thank you. I really, I, what he's done in your life is really remarkable. It's incredible. And what I've seen come out of you is this, like, real anointing. Like, look, how tall are you? 6' 5". 6' 5", OK. So, like, God helped you out in the very beginning. You're 6' 5". You're fast. You're strong. You had a cannon arm. You had certain tools to play that game. And then you worked your tail off. Because there's a bunch of other dudes that have those tools that don't make it, right? So you worked your tail off to become one of the greats of all time. And that was sort of an apparent gift. But what's really remarkable with me watching you, because I've watched interviews of you when you played. I would not say that when you played and I watched you get interviewed that you had this gift of articulation or verbal, almost like music, the way that you could speak. Then when you started to serve God and serve other people, this new thing was, like, revealed to you through doing it. Are you sometimes up there going, whoa, like? Well, he gives you a new gift. OK. You can articulate the things that we're doing, playing baseball, sports, this and that. But the gift that he gives you is his anointing. And he allows you to speak a different language. He educates you in a totally different way when you submit yourself to him, for real. You can't straddle the fence and think, well, I can say these things and it works. And it doesn't have the anointing. The anointing is what works when you are walking truly with him and understand his principles. I understand it more today than I ever have. It does not belong to me. And a lot of people have the gift and the platform, but they utilize it for themselves. I don't utilize the gift for myself. I utilize it for the kingdom to make a difference. Because I don't want God to say, I gave it to you and you made it clearly about you. You want it to sound good. You want it to look good. You want to dress up and make people say, oh, wow. He's special. There's nothing special about me. There's nothing special about none of us at the end of the day. We're just a vessel that he takes and he pours his spirit into. And it goes here. I love that. Go help people. It's really interesting. This theory, tell me what you think about this. I think God sows into each of us two or three really special gifts that are ours, that are a piece of him in us. And when you look at the person, when you see them with it, you see Christ in them. But those gifts are different. Yours could be your verbal anointing. But for other people, they don't realize they have this gift. It might be their gift of discernment. It might be their gift of resiliency or humor or beauty or nurturing ability or kindness or their ability to listen. They think, oh, that's not a gift because a gift is being 6'5 and hitting home run. We're bored. But seriously, or it's LeBron. He can windmill dunk. Or it's Beyonce, how she sings and looks. I don't have gifts. Your gifts are equally powerful. They're just unique to you. But what's interesting about life, it's like, how do they get revealed? I found they get revealed usually through two paths. One is when we go through pain. You go through a painful time. And on the other side of that pain, because it's temporary, you do get a revelation of a new gift or a new understanding of yourself you didn't have before. Or the other one is service in our world of God's kingdom. But everyone has those gifts, but they're revealed through those two things. You think I'm wrong? You're totally right. I think people don't recognize that. Pain is part of life. And you don't stay there. You don't dwell in it. You pick yourself up. And then God's going to reveal to you a happy side. I agree. More than anything. I think people stay there and pour me, pour me, pour me. Well, nothing can work through you if you feel like that. This body is just an operation system that's for more to come out of. And I always tell people, my pain of who I was led me to my greatness of playing baseball. But my greatness led me to the destructive behavior. There's two parts of that. And then there's the other part where you become like a new creature. You are created in a new place. And you develop all these other gifts that are inside of you. People don't let those other gifts come because they don't trust the process. And they won't discipline themselves. You've got to discipline yourself in everything that you're going to do if it's going to work. I mean, if you want to stay at one place and you want to get out of here just being a baseball player, a singer, get out of here, you're missing the whole point of this life. It's more to it than just that. How the heck is this better than the last time we did this? This is actually better than the last time. And I'm telling you, that was one of my favorite shows ever. But you're spitting some depth of wisdom now. You're at a different level now, Darryl. You are at a different level now. This is tremendous what you're saying. OK, I just want to acknowledge you on that. Well, thank you. Because I'm sitting here going, sometimes it happens to me when I'm doing the show, I'm like, shoot, this is good. And that's not always the case when you're doing the interview. You're just getting out of your way today. I'm allowed two more questions because I have to go speak. You're going to be speaking later. One is only for me and Red Sox fans. And then the other one will be a deep, profound question. We're going to end with a banger that everybody needs to wait for. But I got to ask you this. 86, I want to talk a lot about this, because I'll start crying, OK? I know. Yeah, I don't, OK. He's showing the ring, you guys. Congratulations to you. Thank you. But did you, you didn't really think you were coming back in that game. Like, you know the game I'm talking about. When Mookie hits it under Buckner's legs. Were you in the dugout going into that inning going, we're done? I just need to know what was actually happening in the Mets dugout. If you guys all don't know this, I think arguably the greatest comeback in the history of baseball happened in the ninth inning, a game six, 1986. I literally cried on the floor of my house, just so you know, because of you and these fools you were playing with. But when you go back into the ninth inning, you're down, this thing's over. Did you think it was over for real? I heard there were guys in your locker room drinking beer during that inning thinking this thing was over. Is there any truth to that? There was only one guy. That was probably Keith, you know. Keith, he was in there drinking beer. And I was in Davey Johnson's office with him too, because I was pissed off because I had got double switch in the game. So I had a little chip on my shoulder. I wanted to be out there. And if we're going to lose, we're going to lose. I want to be a part of it. If we're going to win, I want to be a part of it. But what people fail to realize about the 86 match is we came back 40 times that year behind to win games. 4-0. Yeah. OK, that's a lot. So we knew how to, after the seventh inning or something like that, we used to know how to come back. And I think that's what people fail to realize about those guys that were coming to the plate. They were determined. We had been in this place before many times. Yeah, a couple of us thought, man, we blew this. Because we were so good. They were the best. You were the best team. Yeah, and we beat the Astros. We got through them. And that was a tough series. And we just thought, man, we blew this. We blew the series. Carter didn't want to make the last out. Mitchell came up. He didn't want to make the last out. Ray Knight came up. He didn't want to make the last out. I mean, they never give those guys credit for not making that last out. True. Well, Calvin Sheraldi and Stanley didn't get anybody out. And then they want to blame the one play on Billy Buckner, who was a great player. Great player. You know, and they crucified him in Boston. And I mean, he had to move out from the understanding about the situation. And what a great player, almost had 3,000 hits. He was a great player in his career. I mean, I would want to be on the field, too, for the first time, to be able to feel what it's like to jump up and win a championship. Because every player, that's every player's dream when he's young and grow up and see that. And there it was, him trying to beat Mookie to the bag. And he looked up, and he didn't see Stanley there, I believe. OK. Because I think if he, because he got a late run off to get there. He had to be there. You're right, by the way. Because for him to keep his eye on the ball, and he's looking and seeing if his pitch is over there so he can flip it to him. And he wasn't there yet. And that's what. No offense to Stanley, but that was a big, slow dude. He was not there at normal speed. And Buckner was also injured. Right, he had injuries and everything. But I think that's when he took his eye off the ball, because he was looking way at my pitcher, you know. And before you know it, the ball rolls to his legs, and there you go. But they had us in game seven, too. I know. I won't be inside baseball too much. But the next night, you guys are down again. Came back. But did you, this is just a life lesson, too. I'm asking as a Red Sox fan. But like, it truly isn't over until it's over. And I think a lot of people watching this, they think it's over. Like, they've booted the ball in life, seriously. And they think it's game over, and it's not. It's not. You know, this is what people, baseball is just like the game of life. It's not over till it's over. And if you sit on it and say, well, it's over, and we won it, then, and you say, well, it's over, and my life, it's not over. If you think it is, it is. If you think it is, it's over. But if you don't think it's over, bro, you get another life, man, and you become even more incredible than you can ever imagine. Well, that's my last question. This is the banger of the interview. I'm waiting till the end to ask it. Someone's watching. They're like, I want another life. I want a different life. And if I could run into Darryl Strawberry, you and I ran into each other down at that coffee shop earlier, right? Let's say that wasn't me. They said, hey, I heard you on the Ed Milet Show, and I'm getting your book. I ordered your book, but I haven't got it yet. So I'm curious. I want another life. I want a different life. I'm not happy in my life right now. I want another one. What would you say to them? I would encourage them, you know, take new steps. You tried everything else. It didn't work. Just like me, I tried everything out there, and it didn't work. And I tried a different way of life. I tried to do it on my own, and I wasn't strong enough to do it on my own. And I asked God for his help for real. And I stopped playing God in my life. Because, see, a lot of us want to play that. We want to control, like you talked about, ego. A lot of us got these big egos, and that's a three-letter word, easing God out. I'll do it myself. When God goes, go ahead. I was like that, too. Go ahead. Just drive it off the cliff. Because that's where you're going to drive it. And you're going to end up in a ditch somewhere, and you're not able to get out. And you have to be able to trust that process. It's not an overnight miracle that happens in people's lives. I think people think it should happen overnight. You didn't get in this mess overnight. So it's going to take some time to walk through. And trust other people that have experienced it, that have wisdom and knowledge in these areas. I'm not trying to force anything on you. But I'm trying to tell you, this is where his love is for you. He's got something for you. Go get it. Get up. Dude, what happens when we, do you do this all the time? Or is this like something that happens to you? This was a great conversation today. Well, thank you. You make it easy, so. Oh, I don't know about that. You put it out there for me. Brother, this was a great conversation. Like, Max, I know this thing's not supposed to come out for a while. My son's the producer. This needs to get out quick. Both our sons are here today. Yeah, no, that's cool. That's what it's all about. Thank you. Thank you, brother. This was outstanding. I'm proud of you, and I love you. I appreciate it. I love you, too, brother, always. You know that. Stay alive. You too. You try to, you know. I'm working on it. All right, everybody. His book is Another Life. That's Daryl Strawberry. I don't need to ask you to share this one. Just go do it. God bless you. Max out your life. This is The Ed Mylan Show.