Barry Zito is a good guitar player.
He used to be a good pitcher. Good enough, in fact, to have the San Francisco Giants offer him a $100 million-plus contract after the 2006 season.
That's about the time people could stop using "good" and "pitcher" in the same sentence when referring to him.
Zito, who's scheduled to start for the Giants today, has compiled a 21-30 record so far with the team. And it's not really a matter of no offensive support. His earned-run average in a San Francisco uniform stands at 4.95, in a home park that's supposed to favor pitchers.
So far this year, he's lost his first two starts giving up 10 earned runs in 9 innings. That must have Giants fans groaning: Here we go again …
In 2008, Zito, a former American League Cy Young Award winner, lost his first eight decisions. San Francisco management threatened to banish him to the bullpen, but he responded with a victory just in time, beating Florida on May 23.
From then on he wasn't so bad, but he did end up tying for the league lead in losses with 17.
Zito won't turn 31 for another couple of weeks, so he's not too old to turn his career back around. And since he throws with his left hand, he probably will be in demand for quite a few more seasons in one capacity or another.
But his performance so far as a Giant serves as a reminder that long-term contracts for pitchers might not be the wisest of baseball investments. Even if they play a mean guitar.
Trivia #11: Who signed with Colorado for what was the richest contract for a pitcher at the time, and compiled a 21-28 record for the Rockies? For the answer, scroll down and look to the right.
This commentary served as a good-luck charm for Barry, who pitched shutout ball the day I posted this!
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