NEW YORK -- Former New York baseball stars Darryl Strawberry and Dwight Gooden are forever linked in the publics mind, but not necessarily their own.That fitting line concludes ESPNs latest 30 for 30 documentary , Doc & Darryl, which examines their relationship. The film premieres Thursday at 9 p.m. EDT, two nights after the All-Star game.Both men symbolized the New York Mets mid-1980s resurgence, winning back-to-back Rookie of the Year awards. They had freakish talents: Strawberry to hit moon shot home runs and Dr. K Gooden to freeze batters with his fastball and curve. Drug abuse cut short both of their careers, and they eventually served time in the same jail, although not at the same time.Directors Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio wanted to see what sort of relationship the men had, and the heart of the film is a conversation held before cameras at a Queens, New York, diner, the same one where scenes from the movie Goodfellas were shot.Their body language and lack of eye contact betray a discomfort, reminiscent of get-togethers with friends who hadnt connected in years.The interview revealed that Strawberry had never asked Gooden why he missed the ticker tape parade celebrating the 1986 Mets championship, even though the outfielder had gone to Goodens house to give him a ride and hadnt found him. Similarly, Gooden had never talked to Strawberry about an incident where teammate Ray Knight approached Strawberry about rumors that one of the Mets two black superstars was involved in drugs. Knight confronted Strawberry, who said it wasnt him.Theres a connection and a love between them, Bonfiglio said. They bonded as teammates. But theyre not close. They never had the conversation that they had at the diner.The subject matter -- seemingly endless relapses, lost dreams and betrayals -- isnt particularly easy, either.Apatow, maker of comic films like Knocked Up, and Bonfiglio seem like odd teammates themselves. Apatow had tweeted praise about an ESPN documentary to a contact at the network once, who shot back a response wondering whether hed like to make one himself. He expressed interest in a piece on Gooden and Strawberry, if they could be persuaded to participate.Apatow once followed the Mets, but he found rooting for a team too nerve-racking and gave it up, just before their magical 1986 season.He had met Bonfiglio, a noted documentarian known for films on Metallica and Bo Jackson, when he interviewed Apatow for an episode of Sundances Iconoclasts series. Apatow asked him to collaborate for the ESPN film.While Apatow is known for inducing belly laughs on films like The 40-Year-Old Virgin and This is 40, many people overlook his sensitivity, Bonfiglio said.It would be such a different film if I had done it myself, Bonfiglio said. We were in total synch with the vision, but hes so interested in how people behave and how they deal with the challenges of life.Apatow has seen plenty of people in show biz unable to handle sudden success. Its a very common theme, except when you are one of the greatest hitters and pitchers of all time while going through it.If youre in New York, people would get upset if you dont come through for the team, Apatow said. They dont care what your life is like, what your childhood was like and what youre struggling with. They just want results.The film shows how early the seeds of their abuse were planted, which may surprise some fans. Both men dealt with difficult dads. Strawberrys was abusive and alcoholic. Goodens dad was also alcoholic, and he drove his son relentlessly to achieve his own failed dreams. Both future stars drank and drugged in high school. Gooden recalls being rip-roaring drunk the first time he met Strawberry.Doc & Darryl is noteworthy, too, in not being a redemption tale. Both former stars are trying hard to stay clean, Strawberry with the help of religion and a grounded relationship.But too many people have been burned thinking this part of their journey is over.A lot of times when people tell an addiction story it ends with people who are clean and sober, theyre fine, or theyre dead, Bonfiglio said. A lot of times its not the case. A lot of times its a lot more complex than that. We didnt want to make it easy, because it isnt easy.---Follow David Bauder at twitter.com/dbauder. His work can be found at http://bigstory.ap.org/content/david-bauder---Online: http://www.espn.com/30for30/Fake China Jerseys . 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Meanwhile, the Oilers dealt long-time sniper Ales hemsky to the Ottawa Senators on Wednesday for a fifth-round pick in 2014 and a third-rounder in 2015.The good news for the NFC North last season was seeing the division-leading Minnesota Vikings bounce back to something like their best, meaning two teams making the play-offs again.AFC: In Review A look through the whole division as we dish out our grades But the post-season did not prove kind to the division, which saw all four teams suffer inconsistent runs, with the Vikings losing a 10-9 heartbreaker to the Seattle Seahawks in wildcard week and the Green Bay Packers going down 26-20 in an overtime thriller against the Arizona Cardinals a week later.There were signs of life from the Chicago Bears but the season ended in a disappointing bottom place, while the Detroit Lions went 7-4 after an 0-5 start but now have to think about life after Calvin Megatron Johnson, who appears set to retire... Minnesota Vikings (11-5) Blair Walshs missed field goal will be the abiding Vikings memory, despite a positive season Major improvements on both sides of the ball saw the Vikings top the standings, a position confirmed in the final week of the season when they went to Green Bay and beat the Packers at Lambeau Field to secure the division.The Vikings drafted really well last April, and three of their younger players - LBs Anthony Barr and Eric Kendricks and WR Stefon Diggs - look like going on to be stars in the NFL, which bodes well for them not falling too far back next season, when they are due to start life in the state-of-the-art US Bank Stadium.Star player: Although the young players were a nice bonus, it was reliable running-back Adrian Peterson who put his disciplinary issues behind him and proved to be the focal point of their offence. Peterson rushed for 1,485 yards and 11 touchdowns and looked like a player who is far from finished yet. Grade: A. And there is every chance it could be better than that next season if they can eke some improvement out of QB Teddy Bridgewater, or even find a more effective replacement. Adrian Peterson delivered another impressive season for the Vikings Green Bay Packers (10-6)Although the Packers managed to last a week longer in the post-season their season will have to go down as a disappointment after a 6-0 start, with defeats against the Arizona Cardinals and Vikings in their last two games costing them divisional honours. Green Bay Packers scored an incredible touchdown with just seconds on the clock to take their playoff match with the Arizona Cardinals to overtime The problem? Definitely their offence which did not include a 1,000 yard rusher or receiver and saw QB Aaron Rodgers have a down year - if 31 touchdowns and oonly eight interceptions can be described as a down year.dddddddddddd. The most telling stat was a decrease in points scored from 486 to 368 - still a good number in NFL terms but a big decrease to try and overcome.Star player: Id have been close to saying Ha Ha Clinton-Dix, if only for his name, but despite it being a down year Aaron Rodgers remains the Packers biggest talent and their best chance of getting back to the top of the division. His QB rating dipped below 100 (92.7) for the first time since 2009 and he could really do with Jordy Nelson coming back fully fit from a torn ACL next year.Grade: B. With a masterly must do better. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers was the stand-out star for the Packers again this season Detroit Lions (7-9) Calvin Johnson shows fantastic skill with a diving touchdown... will Megatron still be showcasing his skills next season? A three-game winning streak at the end of the season took the Lions off the bottom of the division but 2015 will go down as a major disappointment for the team, and they go into next season with a big question mark over them.Detroit started the year 0-6, with suggestions of a possible 0-16 season on the cards, but there was a response from QB Matthew Stafford and WR Calvin Johnson, who appears set to leave the NFL on something of a low note and leave a massive hole to fill, possibly from the draft. Ziggy Ansah delivered a standout season for Detroit Lions Star player: There were signs of life from rookie RB Ameer Abdullah, who could be a serviceable NFL RB in the future, but well go defensive this time with DE Ziggy Ansah, who nearly doubled his sack total and finished with 14.5 on the season, third best in the league. Hes young enough (26) to have plenty of years left in him.Grade: C. And a see me sent to Megatron, who surely can be persuaded to have one more go if his body holds up.Chicago Bears (6-10) Matt Forte will leave a gap to fill for the Chicago Bears Spoiler alert - I am a Bears fan, and although the record was disappointing, I cant be too harsh on the majority of their performances after the big defeats by Arizona and Seattle (pretty good teams!) in weeks two and three.Their other defeats were by 8, 3, 3, 2, 6, 3, 21 and 4 points and three of those came with a deal of bad luck so an 8-8 or even winning record was not that far off in veteran coach John Foxs first season. The concerns for 2016? Impressive offensive coordinator Adam Gases quick disappearance to Miami, where he will take on his first coaching role, the departure of RB Matt Forte, which leaves Jeremy Langford desperately looking to avoid a sophomore slump, and possibly losing WR Alshon Jeffrey to free agency.Star player: Sadly there wasnt one. There were good performances from Langford, Forte and Jay Cutler at times, no one on defence stood out and Jeffrey spent nearly half a season on the sidelines with a variety of injuries. Will we see Alshon Jeffery in a Chicago Bears uniform again? Grade: C. Little was expected of the Bears last season and the same might apply in 2016. They really need a good draft and for 2015 first rounder Kevin White to actually play in some games after missing his entire rookie campaign. ' ' '