Big Z gave up a career-high five home runs last night in a 10-4 loss to the Atlanta Braves and was then ejected for throwing inside on consecutive pitches to Chipper Jones with one out in the fifth.
Zambrano was tossed without hesitation from the umpire upon throwing inside and simply walked off the mound as if he anticipated the ejection. It appears if Carlos had enough, did not want to battle any longer and actually orchestrated his removal from the game. When Zambrano reached the dugout, he could be seen smirking at the fans yelling at him.
When Zambrano entered the clubhouse, he cleaned out his locker, packed up his belongings and left reportedly told those in the clubhouse that he was retiring. When the game was over and his Cubs teammates entered the clubhouse, Zambrano was nowhere to be found as he apparently retired.
Zambrano has one year remaining on his five-year, $91.5 million contract, with a vesting option for 2013.
This was one of the more cowardly acts we’ve seen in MLB. First Zambrano stopped competing on the field and orchestrated his removal from the game, then he quit on his team. Chicago Cubs fans are great fans and have a hard enough time keeping their heads up without players like this representing their team. If he attempts to come back they should suspend him indefinitely without pay.
Good riddance Carlos Zambrano. With friends like you, your teammates don’t need enemies. You are a disgrace to the Cubs franchise, its fans and MLB.
Random Musings
Has there been a less celebrated on filed performance this season than Ian Kennedy’s? The Arizona Diamonbacks beat the New York Mets 4-3 Friday night behind another solid start from the young right hander as he tossed seven quality innings giving up just one run. In 170.1 innings this year Kennedy is now 15-3 with a 3.12 ERA, 142 Ks and a WHIP of 1.11. Kennedy’s performance now puts Arizona two full games up on the San Francisco Giants in the NL West.
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The founder and former owner of MC3 Sports Media, Mike Cardano is the Sr. Business Administrator for RotoExperts and the Executive Director here at TheXLog.com. You may email Mike @ michael.cardano@rotoexperts.com or follow him on Twitter @MikeCardano. Listen to Mike on Sirius XM Fantasy Sports Radio with Scott Engel and the morning crew Tuesday mornings at 10am ET.
The founder and former owner of MC3 Sports Media, Mike Cardano is the Sr. Business Administrator for RotoExperts and the Executive Director here at TheXLog.com. You may email Mike @ michael.cardano@rotoexperts.com or follow him on Twitter @MikeCardano. Listen to Mike on Sirius XM Fantasy Sports Radio with Scott Engel and the morning crew Tuesday mornings at 10am ET.