Josh Hamilton holds news conference to address alcohol relapse

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Texas Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton said Friday that he had a relapse and had “three or four” drinks Monday at a bar in Dallas, calling it a “weak moment” and that he is taking steps to make sure it doesn’t happen again.

At the news conference he held in Arlington, Texs, to discuss his relapse, Hamilton said he has not taken any illegal drugs, has been tested twice since Monday and will meet with doctors from Major League Baseball soon.

“You all know how hard I work on the field, I give it everything I have. When I don’t do that off the field, I leave myself open for a weak moment. I had a weak moment on Monday night.

‘... “[I] ended up ordering a drink ... probably had three or four drinks, ended up calling Ian Kinsler, to just kind of ... hang out with me. Ian did not know I had been drinking.”

Kinsler is a teammate of Hamilton’s on the Rangers.

When the Rangers acquired him from the Cincinnati Reds in December 2007, they were aware of Hamilton’s off-the-field problems. He is tested for drug use three times a week and has had an accountability partner to support him in his recovery — though that job is now vacant.

Hitting coach Jerry Narron was Hamilton’s accountability partner, but he left the Rangers in November to become the hitting coach for Milwaukee.

Last month, the Rangers hired Hamilton’s father-in-law, Michael Chadwick, as a staff special assistant to be his accountability partner, but Chadwick has since decided against accepting that position because of “family considerations.”

Last summer, Hamilton threw a foul ball toward fans in the left-field seats at Rangers Ballpark in Arlington, Texas, and a man fell to his death as he lost his balance trying to make the catch. The man’s young son was standing right next to his father when he fell. When the playoffs began, the son, 6-year-old Cooper Stone, threw out the ceremonial first pitch to Hamilton, his favorite player.

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-- Houston Mitchell

The Associated Press contributed to this report.