FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  TAYLOR HOOTON FOUNDATION FOUNDER APPLAUDS THE PUBLICATION OF BILL KASHATUS’ NEW BOOK, “SUICIDE SQUEEZE” Heartbreaking Story of Steroids-Related Suicides by Two Promising Young     Athletes Sparked the Formation of Educational Foundation and Mobilized Major League Baseball’s Campaign Against Steroid Use  McKinney, Texas (Thursday, January 26, 2017) – The tragic deaths of Taylor Hooton and Rob Garibaldi, because of their use of anabolic steroids, served as catalysts for the formation of the Taylor Hooton Foundation and have been documented in the new book, Suicide Squeeze (Temple University Press), by author and long-time educator, Bill Kashatus. “We are excited about the release of Bill Kashatus’ new book, Suicide Squeeze,” said Taylor Hooton Foundation Founder and Executive Chairman Don Hooton. “This well-written book chronicles my son Taylor’s story as well as that of another young man, Rob Garibaldi, who met the same fate as Taylor. Their steroid-related deaths were the real catalysts our effort to form the Taylor Hooton Foundation. Since its inception in 2004, the foundation has reached well over a million people through speaking engagements, our website and social media as well as via our Advisory Board of more than 30 active Major League Baseball players.  We are widely recognized as the national leader in the effort to raise awareness about this hidden epidemic. This new book offers us the opportunity to reach thousands more people, who will read Taylor and Rob’s stories and learn about the growing use of these drugs among our youth.”

The new book is available from Amazon:  https://www.amazon.com/Suicide-Squeeze-Garibaldi-against-Teenage/dp/1439914389/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1485789561&sr=8-1&keywords=suicide+squeeze

Appearance and performance enhancing drugs – specifically, anabolic steroids – provide a tempting competitive advantage for amateur athletes, but this shortcut can exact a fatal cost. In Suicide Squeeze: Taylor Hooton, Rob Garibaldi and the Fight Against Teenage Steroid Abuse  (Publication Date: March 1, 2017), Mr. Kashatus chronicles the experiences of Taylor Hooton and Rob Garibaldi, two promising high school baseball players who abused APEDs in the hopes of attracting Division-I college recruiters and professional scouts.

However, as a result of their steroid abuse, they ended up taking their own lives. In Suicide Squeeze – named for the high-risk play in baseball to steal home – Mr. Kashatus identifies the symptoms and dangers of steroid use among teens. Using archival research and interviews with the Hooton and Garibaldi families, he explores the lives and deaths of these two troubled young men, the impact of their suicides on Major League Baseball, and the ongoing fight against adolescent APED use that their parents have been waging. A passionate appeal to prevent additional senseless deaths by athletes, Suicide Squeeze makes an important contribution to debates on youth and sports and on public policy.   What They Are Saying About “Suicide Squeeze” “Suicide Squeeze” sends an important message to baseball’s youth and their parents. This book is about much more than the record-breaking, money, and ethics of the steroid era. Kashatus reveals how two families endured great tragedy and fought back—not only to change the game, but also to save a generation.”

Johnny Bench, Hall of Fame catcher, Cincinnati Reds, 1967–83

—- “Suicide Squeeze” tells the compelling stories of Taylor Hooton and Rob Garibaldi—not only the tragic circumstances surrounding their deaths but also how they inspired Major League Baseball to join the fight against the use of steroids and other performance-enhancing substances among our youth. Together with the Hooton and Garibaldi families, Bill Kashatus has succeeded in putting a human face on this pressing national health issue.”

Allan H. “Bud” Selig, Commissioner of Baseball, 1992–2015; “Class of 2017” Inductee, Baseball Hall of Fame

—- “The 2005 Congressional Hearing on Steroids in Baseball was the catalyst for Major League Baseball to implement the nation’s toughest drug-testing program in professional sports. But what captured my attention most were the moving testimonies of Don Hooton and Denise Garibaldi, parents of sons who had turned to anabolic steroid use to achieve their ambitions as baseball players. William Kashatus’ integration of the tragic stories of Taylor Hooton and Rob Garibaldi with the most recent research on appearance- and performance-enhancing drugs appeals to both our hearts and our minds. “Suicide Squeeze” is a timely and important book for parents, coaches, teachers, and everyone who cares about our nation’s youth.”

George J. Mitchell, U.S. Senator from Maine, 1980-95;   author of Report to the Commissioner of Baseball of an Independent Investigation into the Illegal Use of Steroids and Other Performance Enhancing Substances by Players in MLB

  CONTACT:    Rick Cerrone / Rick Cerrone Communications (914) 715-5491 / rick@rickcerrone.com   For more information about the Taylor Hooton Foundation and its efforts, please visit www.taylorhooton.org and www.allmeleague.com.