VALDOSTA — Former Atlanta Braves closer John Rocker was a guest speaker at St. John Catholic School on Friday.

Rocker, 41, is a former MLB relief pitcher who made his biggest major-league mark as the closer for the Braves from 1998-2001. He helped the Braves break into the 1999 World Series, where they were swept by the New York Yankees.

The former Brave spoke to students about important keys to success for about 30 minutes before taking questions for another 30 minutes.

“Two things that I think a lot of people don’t take into account — foundations and fundamentals of success — is confidence and learning to be self-reliant,” Rocker said.

As Rocker sat in a chair with a coffee cup in hand waiting to begin, a group of older students filed into the room, the majority immediately gathered on the floor in front of the special guest. The students began firing away with questions about Rocker’s baseball career: ‘Did you play with Chipper Jones? Did you play with John Smoltz? How fast could you throw?’

The kids scurried to their backpacks and began ripping out sheets of paper for an autograph, to which Rocker graciously obliged.

An autograph line formed before and after Rocker’s presentation. A poster of Rocker during his Braves’ tenure was displayed at the podium and two copies of his memoir, “Rocker: Scars and Strikes,” were displayed on a table beside the podium. His book was published in 2011.

“Veterinarian, lawyer, business owner, whatever… it’s got to be somebody. Why can’t it be you?” Rocker said to the crowd.

Rocker discussed the importance of overcoming fear and doubting personal ability.

“If you spend your whole life doubting your ability, you’re not going to be very successful,” he said. “Start overcoming that. What can fear do for you? Nothing.”

The former Brave also discussed how developing self-reliance should start at an early age. He said learning to depend on oneself is only going to help with age.

But there was one last topic Rocker wanted to touch on before opening the floor to questions: bullying. Rocker said he was once a bully, but learned as he grew older just how insignificant his bullying ways were.

“All the stupid stuff that you think is so important at 11, 12, 15 years old, by the time you’re an adult, all that stuff just kind of trickles away,” he said. “…Start now learning to be nice to people. It doesn’t cost anything to be nice and it can really turn someone’s day around.”

During his playing career Rocker gained a reputation as a temperamental eccentric in a sports world full of its fair share of abrasive figures.

Rocker, a Macon native, pitched for First Presbyterian Day School in Macon during his high-school career before being selected by Atlanta in the 18th round of the 1993 MLB draft. He made his major-league debut on May 5, 1998.

Rocker went 13-22 with a 3.42 career ERA in six major league seasons. He tallied 38 saves in ‘99 for fourth-best in the National League. He had 24 saves in 2000 and ranked ninth in the conference and 19 in 2001, ranking 11th.

During the ‘99 season Rocker pitched in 74 games, seventh-most in the NL.

After leaving the Braves, Rocker went on to play for the Cleveland Indians, Texas Rangers and Tampa Bay Devil Rays. He played his final major league game on May 14, 2003 as a member of the Devil Rays.

Rocker has served as director of public affairs for SaveHomelessVeterans.com and the Ronald McDonald House. He has also helped the fight against multiple sclerosis by helping raise money for the cause.

Rocker was a contestant on the CBS show “Survivor: San Juan del Sur — Blood vs. Water” in 2014. He was the third castaway voted off the hit CBS series after challenging the opposing tribe to a fight.