Carlos Zambrano pitched a brilliant two-hit shutout against the Giants last Friday and was then asked why he can’t pitch like that all of the time. Zambrano’s answer was a little surprising.
In an article written by Paul Sullivan of the Tribune, Zambrano explained that he doesn’t always feel the way he felt on Friday. Then he went on to say:
“Look, this is the only season I haven’t won 16 or 18 or 14 games,” he said. “If it happens again next season, two seasons in a row, I’ll quit. Believe me, I’ll quit. I just have to put this behind me.
As I pointed out in a previous post, Zambrano sometimes has difficulty controlling his emotions. My guess is that his response to the reporter’s question was another example of him speaking emotionally without thinking.
Zambrano is owed $53.75 million over the next four years. I seriously doubt if he’s going to walk away if he has another down year.
Zambrano’s comments made me think of two other guys who have threatened to quit if they don’t play better next year. Chipper Jones of the Atlana Braves is hitting .273/.393/.446 this year with 18 homeruns and 70 RBI. Honestly, that’s not so bad, but his homerun and RBI totals, as well as his slugging percentage, are the lowest of his career.
Jones commented recently that he would walk away from the game rather than endure another season like he has had this year. Admittedly, he has some pretty high standards. But would he really walk away?
Next year (2010) will be Jones age 38 year. He is signed through 2012 with an option for 2013. His contract calls for a reasonable $13 million per year through 2012. The 2013 option is a club option at just $7 million. Regardless of Jones’ high standards, the Braves are probably getting the production they are paying for.
Another guy with high standards is the Astros’ Lance Berkman. So far in 2009, the 33-year old Berkman is hitting .268/.399/.505 with 24 homeruns and 77 RBI. Like Jones, those stats are among the worst of his career. I suppose that is why he announced earlier in the year that a repeat of this year would lead to his early retirement.
Berkman is owed $14.5 million in 2010 and the Astros hold a club option for 2011 worth $15 million (with a $2 million buyout). Like Jones, Berkman has had an outstanding career, but it’s hard for me to believe that he would just walk away if he has a sub-par (by his own standards) season in 2010.
I think it’s hard for Ken Griffey, Jr. to believe it too. Griffey, who will turn 40 in November, would like to return to the Mariners next year. This, despite the fact that he is only hitting .214/.323/.395 with 16 homeruns and 50 RBI. He apparently doesn’t have standards quite as high as Jones or Berkman.
Griffey has been one of the most exciting players of the past two decades. He is a hero in Seattle and a sure fire Hall of Famer. But like Willie Mays before him, it is sad to see this once superstar play the way he is playing now after such a brilliant career.
It’s just my opinion, but I’d like to see Jones and Berkman stick around, but I’d prefer that Ken Griffey, Jr. call it quits.
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I owe a huge apology to Phil Rogers of the Tribune. In yesterday’s post, I disparaged him for getting the story wrong about Tim Bogar being a front runner for the Astros manager position. As it turned out, I’m the idiot who got it wrong. My apologies, Phil. I don’t always agree with you, but if I’m going to criticize you, I should at least get my facts straight.
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I previously said that I would like to see the Cubs offer Rich Harden arbitration after this season. I expect him to turn it down, but at least the Cubs will get the draft picks (Harden is a type A free agent). I also said that I’m opposed to the Cubs offering Harden a multi-year contract.
I stand by what I said, but I’m starting to think that the Cubs may just let Harden walk away without offering him arbitration. The reason is that the Cubs have some depth when it comes to starting pitching. We already know that, barring any trades, the Cubs will have Zambrano, Ryan Dempster, Ted Lilly and Randy Wells. Tom Gorzelanny will probably be the fifth starter, although Sean Marshall also has a shot at the starting rotation. That’s a pretty stout starting rotation even without Harden.
Rich Harden is a very special pitcher when he’s healthy, but history shows that staying healthy is a challenge for him. He made $7 million in 2009 and is due for a raise. The Cubs may be better off letting him walk rather than risking an arbitration award of $8 – $12 million. They could use that money elsewhere and still have a very good pitching staff.
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You’ve got to like Randy Wells attitude. After losing to the Giants on Sunday, Lou Piniella seemed unconcerned about his performance, saying that the impressive thing was the way Wells had pitched all year and the fact that he was still going strong in September. Wells, who is the first Cubs pitcher to notch double digits wins in his rookie season since Kerry Wood, disagreed:
”I don’t believe that at all, no. I hate that,” he said. ”I’m not here as a sideshow or a fill-in. I want to stay here. I want to be part of the rotation next year. And I hate that.
”I’m here to pitch, and I’m here to pitch for a long time. And I don’t like losing. I hate losing. I hate walks. I hate cheap base hits when you could have prevented them. All that is stuff for me to build off of and learn from and try to be even better next year.”
Randy Wells just moved up on my list of favorite Cubs.
