"I make the right choices on a day-to-day basis. I try to stay in recovery, and as far as my baseball goes, it's all about everything being based around my relationship with the Lord," Hamilton said early at Rangers Ballpark. "I look at it like, you know how I try to play out there on the field, I give it everything I absolutely have. When I don't do that, it leaves me open for a weak moment, on and off the field." Hamilton was suspended for more than three years because of drug and alcohol use while in the Tampa Bay organization. He missed all of 2003, part of 2004 and the first month of the 2005 season before becoming one of the best players on a team that has won the past two American League pennants. He was the AL MVP in 2010. After having a couple drinks with dinner, Hamilton called Ian Kinsler to come hang out with him. "It would be good if it got talked about regarding a contract, but we'll put that aside for a little bit, before we walk out of the room," Hamilton said. Daniels agreed, he has already agreed with Hamilton's agent, Scott Boras, that contract negotiations will be set aside. Daniels said there is no timetable for resuming. When the Rangers acquired Hamilton in December 2007 from the Cincinnati Reds, they knew about his issues off the field. His drug use, he is tested three times a week, and he has an accountability partner to help support his recovery -- though that position is currently vacant. Daniels, who was in town and spoke later on a conference call, was asked if he was concerned this incident was simply Hamilton having a couple drinks. The GM called Hamilton to say drinking alcohol led the outfielder to do some things he wasn't proud of. In a Friday Twitter post, Hamilton's wife, Katie, wrote: "Really touched by all the encouragement and support coming our way. God is faithful and forgiving so thank you all...for showing us such love and encouragement during this time." The Rangers announced last month that Hamilton's father-in-law, Michael Dean Chadwick, had been hired as a special assistant in the front office to be the accountability partner, but decided against accepting the position because of "family considerations." Hamilton could become a free agent after this season, and there have been talks about a contract extension with the Rangers. While Daniels said Hamilton's relapse created some emotions, including disappointment, the GM indicated the primary concern is Hamilton and his family. Hamilton and his wife have four daughters, the youngest born last summer. While specific, Hamilton said he had a "weak moment" that originated from "personal reasons" involving a family member. He said he went to a restaurant to eat, ended up "ordering a drink and probably had three or four drinks." In January 2009, he drank too much at a bar in Tempe, Ariz., then apologized months later when a dozen pictures were posted online showing Hamilton leaving a bar arm-in-arm, dancing and hugging several young women. At that time, he said he had been clean since October 2005. Although Hamilton told Kinsler he didn't intend to be competitive, Hamilton said he later returned to where they left and had more drinks. "I don't know, I wasn't there," Daniels said. "It's how Josh is going to handle these things moving forward now." But Daniels said people like that may not always be around Hamilton during the offseason, when he goes home to be with his family, which was the case this week. "I could hide the shame and not bring it out tonight, but I don't want to do that," Hamilton told the group while reiterating his Christian faith. "What I did, I have to fess up to what I did today. And I'm going to let it be somebody; I'm going to fess up. People are going to call me a hypocrite, but I'm a sinner." "Things happened personally, and I'm not proud of what I did after I drank, they're personal, they're things I need to deal with," he said at a news conference Friday specifically requested to address the incident. "Knowing it's going to be in social media, Twitter, people get excited. If I have a beer with somebody or something like that, take any picture, but I didn't take anybody's picture." Texas Rangers slugger and recovering addict admitted he had three or four "drinks" and continued drinking Monday night at a Dallas restaurant and bar after dinner. Hamilton said he did not take any drugs and had no intention of doing so. He said he has had two drug tests since Monday as part of his normal legal procedure. Josh Hamilton came to the podium without tears, without using prepared statements, apologized and shared some details about his recent relapse with alcohol. Nonetheless, it was evident he was disturbed by what he had done. The 30-year-old Hamilton said his latest actions "hurt a lot of people close to me." At one point, he closed his eyes and seemed to force a smile again. He didn't take questions during his 12-minute appearance. Hamilton said Kinsler didn't know he was drinking and he never had a drink in front of his teammate, even when they left the restaurant to shut down nearby for 25-30 minutes to go to another place. Kinsler then drove him back to where he lives not far away. Hamilton did not explain or provide any real indication of what those things were. Daniels said hiring someone for the job, which was in the final stages before the recent incident, was a process close to the team. He said an announcement will come next week. "To everybody I've hurt, everybody - fans, kids, people with addictions, people who look up to me - I'm sorry," he said. "When you do stuff, you don't intentionally hurt anybody, you just feel like you're hurting yourself, but I know I hurt a lot of people." Hamilton and general manager Jon Daniels said the outfielder will meet with Major League Baseball in New York as soon as possible to evaluate his ongoing recovery with doctors and counselors. After his public apology earlier in the day, Hamilton appeared at a Christian Men's Gathering with Katie in Houston near Texas on Friday night. He again took no questions, only addressing the crowd. This is Hamilton's second known alcohol-related relapse within three years. Both were during the offseason, while this one comes amid talks with the Rangers on a contract extension. Hitting coach Johnny Narron's main role was to support the former No. 1 overall draft pick, but Narron left the Rangers in November to join Milwaukee. Related thematic articles: EU investigates Samsung network patent licensing practices WordPress for Small Business Websites On January 16, 2012 by Eric Leave a Comment Promote your website, let your bottom line? Internet marketing checklist: 37 ways to promote your website Learn Free Website Promotion Tutorial Methods