Word over at Mets Blog is that there is a good chance Dwight Gooden will join the Mets for their farewell to Shea ceremony on Sunday. The very idea of Doc and Darryl Strawberry, two of my childhood idols together, arm and arm at Shea on stadium gets me a bit emotional for a number of reasons.

Doc and Darryl were baseball royalty to me. Doc, the most dominant pitcher in baseball, who could have possibly been one of the greatest of all time had things turned out differently off the field. Darryl Strawberry, with his sweet golf swing, teeing off and dispensing baseballs with such effortless force it seemed like he was driving them with a three wood. While they faded soon after their stars ascended, the impact they had on me as a kid has never dulled and in fact burns brighter as the years go by.

I’ll watch quite emotionally if both of my boyhood idols do indeed arrive together at Shea one last time, and a goodbye to this field of dreams will feel a whole heck of a lot more complete.

Kevin Karnan of the Post catches up with Dwight “Doc” Gooden and his son, Dwight Jr, both out of prison and trying to stay that way.  Dwight Jr had been jailed for selling drugs, and his time in prison overlapped with that of his father. According the article, Doc is working on straightening out his life, spending time with his family, and helping his son, who is trying to better his life through music.  From Doc:

“It ain’t about me anymore; I’m living for my kids now”

Gooden was a Met by his teens, but already struggling with drugs by his time on the 86 World Series team. According to the article, he has no plans to return to baseball.

Its good to see that Doc seems to be making some progress, however the question as always remains is if he can stick with it. His problems have been on and off since the 80s, and its not the first time we’ve been told he’s on the straight and narrow and turning his life around. Hopefully through the help of his son and family this time it’ll work out for him.