Former third baseman Butch Hobson: players who left the game on their own terms: one-time Red Sox slugger pounded 30 HR with 112 RBI in 1977, but injuries and other off-field obstacles led to a shortened playing career.(Curtain Calls)

NO ONE EVER QUESTIONED HOW hard Butch Hobson played on the field during his major league career, but what most people didn't know was how hard he was "playing" off of it.

These days, the rejuvenated, 53-year-old, who manages the Nashua Pride of the independent Atlantic League, talks candidly about his drug use during his playing days and its impact on his career.

"I came up in an era when that (using drugs) was what you were supposed to do. As a good old boy from Alabama, I thought that was the way to fit in. It probably cost me three or four more years of baseball," he said.

Drawing from his own experiences, the former Red Sox third baseman now gives motivational speeches, taking his message about the dangers of substance abuse to young athletes. It's a talk that Hobson, himself, would've benefited from during his formative years.

Hobson manned the hot corner for his high school baseball team and played quarterback for the football team. He would later attend the University of Alabama where he played baseball and served as backup pivot for legendary coach Bear Bryant.

Going into his senior year, Hobson made the decision to concentrate exclusively on baseball. Breaking the news to his dad--who had been a quarterback himself--proved to be easy compared to telling coach Bryant.

"I told coach Bryant my decision and he told me, 'Well, Butch from what I've seen of you on the baseball field, you'll be back playing football for me next year,'" recalled Hobson. "I remember leaving that office in a cold sweat thinking, 'I'm going to show you.' Coach Bryant was always a great motivator."