How Faith Saved This World Series MVP from the Grip of Depression

Published: July 7, 2026

By Mallory Mattingly

Former Chicago Cubs second baseman Ben Zobrist opened up about how he won the 2016 World Series while battling depression.

“I didn’t understand what was happening to me. I was really angry and depressed, and it was turning inward, and I was self-shaming and doing a lot of things,” Zobrist admitted on the “Sports Spectrum” podcast. “Then I started to have thoughts, like suicidal ideation, and stuff that was just not a part of my life, and I was like, ‘God, I know this isn’t from you, but why am I feeling this way and thinking this way?'”

The athlete held in so many emotions as he tried to play the “hero” for everyone around him.

“I couldn’t stand up under it in my internal state, because I wasn’t handing all that to the Lord; I was really trying to do it myself out of my own strength,” he continued. “I was putting so much pressure on myself that ultimately I got so depressed, even after we won the World Series, and I had all these requests.”

“That was where it took a turn, because I was praying to the Lord. I was asking the Lord to take these feelings away, and I was certainly ashamed that I was feeling that way and didn’t want to talk about it,” he added. “And I remember one morning the Lord woke me up with the word, ‘Enough, enough, enough.'”

Zobrist thought God was telling him to “man up” and saying “enough of the self-pity, whining and complaining.” But in reality, God was telling him something totally different.

“He stopped me in my tracks, and I remember hearing the still small voice of the Lord that was just saying, ‘You’re enough when you are broken right now and in your worst place for me to send my son to die for you, not when you’re out winning championships or being what everybody wants you to be right now. You were enough when you were in this place where you felt like you were broken and hurting,'” he recalled.

He said that moment forever changed his relationship with the Lord.

Zobrist has since taken what God has taught him and turned it into a book called Prepare for the Pressure: 9 Strategies to be Courageous, Consistent, and Resilient When It Matters Most.

In the book, Zobrist “offers a powerful, practical guide to performing with courage, consistency, and resilience when the heat is on. Drawing from the highest-stakes moments of his career — including his legendary performance in the 2016 World Series — Zobrist delivers nine transformative principles to help you rise to any occasion, on or off the field.”

Zobrist overcame his post-championship depression and found lasting emotional freedom by realizing that his worth is inherently rooted in God’s love rather than his on-field performances.

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