An Open Letter to Josh Hamilton

Ted Kluck writes an encouraging letter to professional baseball player, Josh Hamilton, who recently was exposed on Deadspin.com with some not-so-good photos of himself in a situation that was less than glamorous for a married man.

Ted writes:

Dear Josh,

I'm writing to thank you for your reaction to the events of last week—namely your comments in the wake of those, er, compromising pictures of you that surfaced on Deadspin.com.

In the midst of a summer of stories about one NFL player shooting himself in the thigh, another taking a life while driving intoxicated, a former NFL star leaving the joint after serving two years for dog fighting, and many of your baseball colleagues going down amid steroid-related allegations, your indiscretion seems, by comparison, tame (though a breach of marital trust is still a big deal—more on that later). Your biggest mistake seems to have been Partying While Christian.

The fact that you have been outspoken about your faith drew the ire of the snark-slinging Deadspin.com fraternity. Let me say this—neither of us are even remotely cool enough to begin to comment on anything that happens on Deadspin.com, which has become something of a sarcastic haven for Too Cool for School sports fans. In their mind you're hopelessly hypocritical and I'm an even worse monster—a conservative, church-loving fundamentalist Christian; I'm Ned Flanders with a press pass. They're seeing blood in the water (you) and doing what they're paid to do, which is rip you to shreds.

Anyway. Back to Partying While Christian. What the Deadspin crowd fails to appreciate about your situation is that in its aftermath, you demonstrated Christian virtues of humility and repentance. Your willingness to atone publicly for your sins, acknowledging what you did wrong and a desire to change, sets a great example for sports fans everywhere—Christian or not. In an era when PR-department-generated "sports apologies" usually range from lying, at worst, to just sort of evasive and weak, at best, your apology is a bright light. And the way you've turned your life around—overcoming your addictions to drugs and alcohol while giving your life to Christ—is still an inspiration to millions.

A word to the evangelicals who feel somehow let down or ripped off by your mistake: Don't. To put it simply, there is a speck in your eye and a plank in mine. It's just that your speck ended up all over the Internet because of what you do for a living. As a young(ish) husband and father myself, I'm sad about what you did and the pain it caused your family, and my prayer is that God would honor your desire to remain clean and move forward. But far be it from me to cast the first stone. Our lives are more complicated than any glossy, 800-word Christian Athletes Are Great! puff piece could even begin to capture. I know because I've written some of those puff pieces. Your recent indiscretion is a reminder that even our best role models will sometimes stumble, but can remain role models nonetheless.

So keep hitting baseballs, cognizant of the fact that by the time this story runs there will be somebody else's blood in the Internet water. Some other bar fight, coke bust, failed class, or DUI. This isn't great but it's the world we live in. And know that there are Christians who are proud of you—proud of the courage it took to own up, and proud of your desire to live a holy life and grow in sanctification.

Appreciatively,

Ted Kluck

Watch Josh talk about his conversion here in this very powerful video.