Mark Grace, who went from the Diamondbacks’ broadcast booth to a prison cell due to multiple drunk driving convictions has a job in baseball once again. The Hillsboro Hops of the single-A Northwest League have announced that Grace will be their hitting instructor for 2014.
The Hops are affiliated with the Diamondbacks, a team which did not abandon Grace when his problems with alcohol became incompatible with his job as a team broadcaster. They allowed him to work as an instructor during spring training, when he was getting work-release passes from jail. Their loyalty to Grace in this regard is admirable and, quite possibly, vital to his recovery and rehabilitation.
