'Reach out for help': WooSox manager Chad Tracy advises during Mental Health Awareness Month
WORCESTER — WooSox manager Chad Tracy remembers exactly where he was when he received a phone call that his best friend committed suicide.
It was Tracy’s second season of pro ball, and he was leaving the Texas Rangers’ spring training facility in Arizona. He was driving down the highway near the Arizona Diamondbacks ballpark when he learned Cyrus Allizadeh passed away of self-strangulation.
Tracy nearly drove off the road in disbelief.
Allizadeh was a 22-year-old senior at UC Berkeley and only a couple of months from earning his degree. The friends spoke only a few days before Allizadeh took his own life on March 16, 2008.
Allizadeh was planning a trip after graduation to visit Tracy on the road at Class-A Bakersfield. Tracy had no idea his friend was struggling.
“There are probably more people out there than many think that has experienced some type of connection with somebody who has gone through that,” Tracy said.
More: Worcester singer Ricky Duran among hundreds take part in annual suicide prevention walk
Since May is Mental Health Awareness Month, the WooSox honored the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention prior to Friday’s game at Polar Park.
The WooSox recognized Jessica Van Der Stad, Laura VanVoorhis and Jessika Zequeira, who will host the Central Mass. Out of the Darkness Community Walk on Sept. 17 at Polar Park.
Tracy sat in his office earlier in the day and recalled his friend’s outgoing personality, and larger-than-life persona.
'A very difficult time'
“Not only was it a very difficult time for his family, but he was my best friend,” Tracy said. “For those of us who knew him well, years after that, and what people went through, I still think about him every single day.”
There’s not a day that goes by Tracy doesn’t think if he could have noticed the signs, or said something to help Allizadeh.
“When that occurred, it was so out of left field, I had no idea. It was like, ‘You’re kidding me’ when I got that call,” Tracy said. “You just never know what people are going through, and when you see people who are maybe down in the dumps, sometimes a friendly arm around them might go a long way.”
Tracy moved to California when he was a sophomore in high school because his father was working for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Tracy met Allizadeh, and they became best friends, both on and off the field.
Since he has a personal experience with suicide, Tracy has a message for those dealing with mental-health issues.
“Reach out for help. Don’t be afraid,” he said. “I think a lot of the stigma is probably ‘Should I be ashamed for reaching out?’ I think there are a lot of people who go through a lot of things, and if you’re going through something, in no way is it a bad thing to reach out to somebody for help. I would encourage people to do that, because there’s somebody who is willing to help you.”
As a minor league manager, part of Tracy’s job is to handle several different personalities in the clubhouse and on the field. He has learned to read players’ body language, and since his friend passed away, Tracy said he’s more alert to certain situations.
“You see something going on, and it’s not necessarily you run up and say, ‘Hey, you’ve got to call this hot line.’ Just be there for somebody, and shine some light on somebody’s day,” Tracy said. “You just never know, and it might do the trick. I looked at things in a very different perspective after that occurred.”
Tracy wishes his wife and kids could have met Allizadeh.
Contact Joe McDonald at JMcDonald2@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @JoeyMacHockey
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: 'Reach out for help' - WooSox manager Chad Tracy advises during Mental Health Awareness Month
