I believe that every Cubs fan knows which season or era really got them into the team. We all like to pretend we’ve been fans since we were born, but I don’t think that’s functionally true. Who knows. Maybe it’s just me, but I definitely remember when things switched from “he’s a casual Cubs fan” to “that crazy guy over there wearing blue seems extremely frustrated by something he’s supposed to love.”
For me, it may have started with Sammy Sosa back in 1998, but the hook wasn’t really set in just yet. Instead, it was the 2003 team (and the 2003-2008 era) that turned me into the crazy person I am today.
Kerry Wood, Mark Prior, Aramis Ramirez, Derrek Lee, etc. These were all the guys that defined my Cubs fandom when there was nothing and no one else to define it. But it’s possible that one name stood out above the rest at that time, for me, and that’s Carlos Zambrano.
Big Z spent 12 seasons in the Major Leagues, 11 of which came with the Cubs. He was on three teams that went to the playoffs (2003, 2007, and 2008), he threw a no-hitter, he was worth 30.6 WAR, he hit 24 home runs as a freakin’ pitcher. He was emotional, he was lovable, he was electric, a little scary, and most of all he was a competitor.
When the Cubs finally parted ways with Zambrano (the new front office led by Theo Epstein traded him to the Marlins for Chris Volstad as one of their very first significant moves), it felt like the end of an era.
But while that may feel like forever ago, Carlos Zambrano is still just 37 years old and guess what … he’s trying to come back!
Guess who is trying to make a baseball comeback? Former Cubs star Carlos Zambrano, who is in great shape and has completely changed his life is pitching for Leones de Yucatán in the Mexican League. He hopes to pitch his way back to the big leagues.
— David Kaplan (@thekapman) July 1, 2018
Zambrano last pitched in the big leagues back in September of 2012 and made seven Minor League starts as a member of the Phillies back in 2013, but, outside of nine Venezuelan Winter League starts back in 2013-2014, he hasn’t been a professional in quite some time.
But now, the pitcher six days younger than Ben Zobrist is trying to make a comeback, starting with the Leones de Yucatan of the Mexican League.
The realist in me knows how severely unlikely such a comeback will be, but the dreamer in me is picturing Zambrano throwing the final out of the 2019 World Series at Wrigley Field (lol … okay, maybe even I’m not that crazy).
In all seriousness, good luck to Big Z, and if the arm doesn’t still have it, maybe he can latch on somewhere as a DH.