Friday, July 8, 2016

The return of Neil Allen

Neil Allen returned to his job Thursday as Twins pitching coach, and a sincere hooray for that.

I've no sound basis for judging the quality of his work as a pitching coach. I'm happy to see him back at his job because it indicates that he's got his life back in order and his disease back under control.

His disease, of course, is alcoholism. He had been sober for more than two decades, then relapsed and got caught driving drunk on May 26.

From the Pioneer Press' Mike Berardino:

“I humiliated myself; I embarrassed this organization,” Allen said. “They could have very easily told me to take a hike. They could have thrown me to the curb, and they didn’t. They probably saved my life with everything they just did. For that, I thank them from the bottom of my heart.”

"They" being Jim Pohlad, Dave St. Peter and Terry Ryan, the Twins owner, president and general manager respectively. Allen spent five weeks in treatment at Hazelden. His legal case is far from finished. And alcoholism is always going to be there for Allen.

He knows that, the Twins know that, we know that. May it all work out well for him.

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