I guess the news is just coming out now about John Wetteland being hospitalized today with some sort of mental issue: depression presumably, but maybe something else. A couple months ago I talked here about him being different, but "zany" or "weird" isn't adequate to describe him. A longer sense of his character in his playing days that I did elsewhere talked about his troubles as a teen, stemming from his parents' divorce when he was 16. So he's been dealing with various personal troubles for what, about 30 years, if not longer. I feared there would be bad news about him today, because several people came to that longer post earlier in the day by searching for "john wetteland suicide."
It may be that the offbeatness and intensity that Wetteland's displayed on the mound and in the M's bullpen carries associated risks as well, in terms of mental stability. Way back in 1990, when he was struggling with the Dodgers, he said: "It’s like I've landed in a hole deep enough so that they have to pump sunlight to you. I've got to find a way out."
Obviously, from this distance, all anyone can do is speculate, and that doesn't help much. I guess details will emerge in coming days: it may be a very rough but temporary issue that he'll recover from, and return as bullpen coach after sorting through things this winter. But the question of him continuing as bullpen coach is a concern for later on, both for him and for Seattle fans.
Police arrive for a 'mental health issue', then a real suicide attempt is awfully likely. We all wish him peace.
Lot of roads to that place, but one common denominator... if it's a real attempt, the person hates his life so much that, whatever is coming next, it's got to be better than this...
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If you were on the phone with a person in this situation, you'd first try to figure out what is bothering them so much, and then offer hope, via the people who've been in the same place and come out of it...
No use speculating what Mr. Wetteland's frustrated goals are with only this info to go on ... regardless of appearances (great baseball situation, great-looking family, etc), a person in such a situation could have problems in the relationship with wife, unrelenting financial problems (perhaps forcing work as a coach post-career), guilt over past indiscretions, lack of empathy/love around the person, addictions, whatever... very likely he has long-term frustrations that have not gotten any better...
Certainly am not accusing, just going thru a checklist that a helpline counselor would be aware of... whatever the problem, it's likely to be extreme ... poor guy needs empathy and hope and needs it now...
Chemical imbalance also not impossible, but that's for the doctors ...
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We notice that Mr. Wetteland is a 'born-again Christian' and the attempt to better oneself is admirable but, in my experience, not necessarily insulation against being very unhappy, depending on circumstances and choices... in my experience, some Christians follow plan A and find peace; others (sincerely) follow plan B and don't...
Hope that he figures out what is bothering him so much, and finds a way to improve it and/or take it with better perspective ... seems like a very likeable guy too...
Best wishes...
Joseph at MC pointed out this spin... er, additional information on the subject...
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Am now willing to hazard a guess, which has a good 50% chance of being wrong... first suspicions in my mind always go to the marital relationship, however nice the relationship looks from the outside... yep, here is the report that it was based on a daddy-mommy argument; we've seen this pitch sequence a few times in our day...
Big painful argument ... daddy perceives mommy as being impossible to deal with once again ... neither he or she will back down ... he screams I can't take this any more... gets kind of scary and 911 is dialed...
Such a scenario would lead me to believe that Wetteland is likely to be fine long-term, if true... believe it or not, I like a guy's chances to deal with that particular scenario...
Also this scenario leaves Wetteland just as able to function as pitching coach in 2010 and, considering that his bosses are all men who (probably) sympathize with the male point-of-view here, leaves Wetteland in not too much hot water re: keeping his job ....
Guess here is that it will be a non-issue for the 2010 M's. Hope here is that Wetteland's family will find peace.
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Take it for what it's worth, not much...
I know you are involved in a church, though the specifics of your role are not well defined here (I'm sure by your own choice, so I don't want to pry)...if you have experience dealing with someone or many someones who are in psychological trouble, could you send me an e-mail (matt.souders@verizon.net)? I have been trying to help someone...a very good friend of mine...and could always use some good advice on the best approach.
Is it confidential, best handled through e-mail, or general enough that we could just use D-O-V? If so, you could start a thread there amigo.
I don't want my friend stumbling onto my comments online and feeling guilty about having caused me stress...last thing she needs right now.
According to the new update Larry Stone just did on his article, the suicide talk was apparently a case of either bad reporting or a bad job by the local police of relaying information to the media. Wetteland's statement: "Thank you for your concerns. My wife and I are very appreciative of the over and above care of our local officers and paramedics. The circumstances leading to my elevated blood pressure and heart rate have been addressed. I am currently resting safely at home."
Zduriencik's statement, also included in the new update, confirms that the circumstances were misreported: "Contrary to earlier news reports, the reason John was hospitalized was because of an extremely high heart rate."