A desperate Dwight Gooden and two other pals of troubled Darryl Strawberry have been searching the drug-infested areas of Tampa for the missing slugger, who’s wanted after bolting from drug rehab.
Gooden – a recovering drug addict and Strawberry’s former teammate on the Mets and Yankees – along with Ray Negron and Ron Dock, drove the streets yesterday looking for the former All-Star.
The Straw Man violated his probation by fleeing Health Care Connections in Tampa late Thursday, cops said.
“We were riding around – we went to one spot in St. Petersburg that Ron knew about,” Gooden, his voice choked with emotion, told The Post from his St. Petersburg home.
“Ray got out of the car, but I didn’t,” added Gooden, who retired from baseball Friday. “I knew a few spots in Tampa where we went, but we didn’t see anyone who had seen Straw.”
Friends say Strawberry – serving a sentence for probation violations stemming from a 1999 arrest for drug possession and soliciting prostitution – has been extremely despondent over chemo for his colon cancer.
“We talked to several drug dealers,” said Negron, a mentor to Gooden and Strawberry when both played with the Yankees. “Nobody has seen him, but everybody knows he’s out on the street.”
Negron currently works for the Cleveland Indians.
As the trio drove through areas known for drug dealing – including Tampa’s College Hill section and West Tampa – Negron was in constant communication with Yankees general manager Brian Cashman.
“He was tremendous,” Negron said of Cashman. “He wanted to know what else he could do for us. He offered to come out with us.”
Cashman said his heart aches for Strawberry.
“Obviously, you worry about the guy,” Cashman said. “When things like that are going on, you don’t sleep very well. Our prayers are with him and his family.”
Former Bomber teammates and coaches were on pins and needles.
“It’s unfortunate, and I hope all is right,” said shortstop Derek Jeter.
Manager Joe Torre said, “It’s scary because there is a lot going on there emotionally for [Strawberry].”