Reading the title of the post, one would think I’m bemoaning the Red Sox being at the very brink of elimination by the Cleveland Indians in the ALCS. Well, believe me, there will be AMPLE time to discuss why the Beantown Nine are spitting the bit in these playoffs, but this is not one of them. Rather, there is this story by Amy K. Nelson of ESPN.com about the recent death of former Sox reliever Rod Beck, who at one time was one of the best at his profession. Sadly, an addiction to cocaine ended his life, and Nelson’s story of his rise in the game, his battle with addiction, and his untimely death from it is both sad and heart-wrenching:

Whenever cocaine entered Beck’s life, it didn’t take hold right away.

But by the end of 2003, [wife] Stacey spotted the signs: staying up late, sleeping in, complaining of a constant cold, and becoming more distant emotionally. A friend told her it was coke, and that’s when Stacey confronted her husband of 15 years. He admitted to using and said he wouldn’t do it anymore. He had it under control, he claimed. It would never happen again.

“I just couldn’t believe it,” she says, “so I did what many other people do — you beg and plead and ask them to stop.”

For Stacey, it was exhausting being a watchdog, wondering what he was doing every time he was in an adjacent room for too long, or when his trip to the grocery story took an extra 30 minutes.

Addiction was slowly taking away the father of their two daughters and the man who was her soulmate. By Christmas 2003, Stacey realized his addiction was now “bigger than we are, and something needs to be done.”

Nelson’s article is well worth the read, and one to share with someone you love or care about. It’s yet another reminder (as if we needed one) of just how ghastly the dance with cocaine addiction can be. Perhaps in reading it, someone’s life will be saved.