From offending races in hateful verbal barrage to right-wing punditry: Where is Braves star John Rocker now?
John Rocker has come a long way since being a successful closer for the Atlanta Braves. The former baseball star has made a name for himself in conservative circles, as the ex-pitcher has shared some opinions with them and aligned himself that way politically. Now, he's landed himself a new role as a result.
WND.com, which is essentially a smaller version of the conservative The Daily Caller, has added the infamous former Braves closer in a new role as a political columnist.
Here's an excerpt of his newest post that made an unfortunate comparison between a lengthy extra innings baseball game and Roger Clemens' trial over whether or not he committed perjury by denying steroid use:
"As I sit in the dugout panting like a dog, our No. 3 hitter strides to the plate with two outs and no one on. At this point in the seemingly unending saga we find ourselves, belief has long since departed, but glimmers of hope still remain as we watch one of our top men dig in to do battle. We all know that at some point in time during this epic tug of war one side ultimately must concede."
Once, Rocker shared a controversial take on the city of New York. The rant came off as inappropriate to many.
The column continues:
"We all begin to pray that this will be that moment. As the at bat wears on our great 'hope' works himself into a 2-ball and no strike count, and our faith begins to rise. 'Surely this is it,' we all think with a confidently intuitive mind. In one moment all we have is a prayer. In the next one our prayers are answered!"
Regardless, Rocker now enjoys a much simpler life living in Georgia. Aside from working on WND, he works as a hunting and fishing guide.
John Rocker MLB stats
Over his career, the former Braves star earned 3.5 fWAR in six MLB seasons. He played from 1998 to 2003. His career record was 13-22 with a 3.42 ERA. He had 332 strikeouts in 225.1 innings, so he had good stuff.
In 2001, he left the Braves. He was traded to the Cleveland Guardians. In 2002, he joined the Texas Rangers and was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays.