Joe Buck will no longer remain anonymous when it comes to his hair-plug addiction.
In his upcoming memoir, “Lucky Bastard: My Life, My Dad, and the Things I’m Not Allowed to Say on TV,” Fox Sports announcer Buck comes clean about how his quest to maintain his hairline nearly cost him his career.
In excerpts published by Sports Illustrated, Buck reveals that he had his first hair-replacement treatment in 1993, after which, “I, Joseph Francis Buck, became a hair-plug addict.”
“Broadcasting is a brutal, often unfair business, where looks are valued more than skill,” the broadcaster says in the book. “I was worried that if I lost my hair, I would lose my job. O.K., that’s bulls—. It was vanity. Pure vanity. I just told myself I was doing it for TV.”
That addiction took its toll during his eighth procedure in 2011, as the baseball season loomed. According to Buck, he woke up after the procedure unable to speak, possibly because his vocal cord became paralyzed due to a protective cuff that was used during his procedure. Buck also theorizes that stress caused by the deterioration of his marriage might have also left him vulnerable to injury.
Buck, embarrassed by the result of his own vanity, blamed the injury on a virus — a canard that Buck is no longer willing to perpetuate.
“I was too scared and embarrassed to tell them the truth,” Buck says in the book. “But I’m doing it now.”
Buck’s memoir is due for publication on November 15.
Lamar Odom and 13 Other Sports Stars Who Battled Addiction (Photos)
Michael Phelps The Olympic swimmer got DUIs in 2004 and again in 2014, resulting in a suspension from U.S/ Swimming. Kellogs also dropped Phelps as a spokesperson in 2009 when photos leaked of him apparently smoking marijuana from a bong.
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Darryl Strawberry The former Mets, Dodgers and Yankees slugger was suspended three times by the MLB for substance abuse, which resulted in a number of arrests and visits to rehab.
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Diego Maradona The Argentinian soccer legend battled cocaine addiction from the mid-80s to 2004. After being rushed to the hospital in 2000 with heart problems, he was treated for alcohol-related hepatitis.
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Josh Hamilton Texas Rangers outfielder started experimenting with drugs in 2001. He then got clean after being confronted by his grandmother, but relapsed in 2009, 2012 and most recently, in Feb. 2015.
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Ricky Williams The New Orleans Saints and Miami Dolphins player began taking marijuana to ease social anxiety disorder, prompting a surprise retirement from the NFL in 2004. He later returned but failed at least two subsequent drug tests after being reinstated.
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Lawrence Taylor New York Giants linebacker tested positive for cocaine in 1987. He quit shortly after but relapsed upon retirement.
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Donte Stallworth The Cleveland Browns wide receiver was charged with DUI manslaughter after he struck and killed a pedestrian while driving his car in March 2009. Following a plea deal, he received a sentence of 30 days in the county jail and 8 years probation.
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Charles Barkley The NBA star turned TNT analyst was arrested in Phoenix, Arizona, in 2008 for DUI after running a stop sign. According to the police report, Barkley was in a hurry to receive oral sex from his female passenger. He spent three days in jail and entered an alcohol treatment program.
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Michael Irvin In March 1996, the Dallas Cowboys wide receiver was arrested on charges of cocaine possession when police found him lying on the floor covered in cocaine with multiple strippers. Irvin pled no contest to the charges and the NFL suspended him for five games.
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Nate Newton Nate Newton made six Pro Bowls in the NFL before being busted for marijuana, earning him two-and-a-half years in a federal prison.
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Todd Marinovich The quarterback was busted for cocaine at USC before being drafted by the NFL. While playing for the Oakland Raiders, he began taking LSD during games. After numerous NFL suspensions, he ended up at the Canadian Football League, where he started with heroin. At one point Marinovich severely cut his hand with a crack pipe during halftime.
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Len Bias Bias, an All-American college basketball forward at the University of Maryland, was selected by the Boston Celtics as the second overall pick in the 1986 NBA Draft. He died two days later from cardiac arrhythmia induced by a cocaine overdose at age 22.
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Dock Ellis Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Ellis threw a no-hitter on June 12, 1970, claiming to have done it under the influence of LSD. He also had a substance abuse problem, and acknowledged after his retirement that he never pitched without the use of drugs.
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After the former NBA player was found unconscious in a Nevada brothel, TheWrap looks at other athletes whose careers were damaged by drink or drugs