Mitchell Page's Second Chance

Mitchell Page, who was fired as hitting coach for the St. Louis Cardinals, was hired by the Nats are their minor league roving hitting instructor.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch has a nice profile of him. Page fought a sometimes-losing battle with alcoholism that indirectly led to his firing. He sought treatment after the season and has been sober for three months.

Page attends 10 support meetings a week and hopes his experience can somehow help others who might have postponed seeking treatment. When he put together a five-page presentation as part of his interview with the Nationals, Page devoted the first to explaining his disease, its treatment and its maintenance. He now reaches for a cappuccino instead of a six-pack and says he has made amends with those he may have hurt during his spiral.

"The program helps you to really pinpoint what actions you take," he said. "The only thing I did was lose my job because of drinking. I never beat my boy. I educated him. I only damaged myself personally. I can live with that."

Good luck to him. I don't know how much of the Cardinal's success can be attributed to him--it's not like he was working with a AAA team--but hopefully this is an opportunity for him to get back on his feet and find another job in the majors, whether that's with us, or not.