Darryl Strawberry is desperate to help Lamar Odom before the fallen Lakers star overdoses again, Page Six reports. The former Major League right fielder made his plea during an episode of Dr. Phil’s syndicated show “The Doctors” on Friday.
“His family reached out to me because I am in recovery. I have two treatment centers,” Strawberry said on the show, which airs Oct. 26. The slugger, now an ordained minister, is the co-founder of Darryl Strawberry Recovery Center in Orlando, Fla. He and his wife, Tracy, co-founded Strawberry Ministries.
Odom nearly died of a drug overdose in a Nevada brothel last year, but that hasn’t stopped him from continuing the #turnup sessions.
“You have to understand, with celebrities, they are always silent. And that’s why most of them end up dying — because of the shame and the guilt,” Strawberry said. “Look at Prince — Prince would be alive today . . . Whitney Houston would be alive today if someone had talked —you don’t have to die like this.”
Strawberry shared his personal story of fighting and overcoming addiction during a free seminar hosted by East Mississippi Community College last month.
“I reached out to Lamar,” Strawberry said, “I have the centers because people’s lives matter. It’s not about me. It’s not calling out the celebrity — you are calling out the disease,” he added. “If you don’t call it out and expose it, you will never get well.”
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