Cubs heart, Sox blood?

While Zambrano loves it on North Side, he says he's always been a South Side fan

 

March 17, 2009

 

BY CHRIS DE LUCA cdeluca@suntimes.com

 

MESA, Ariz. -- It's hard to believe, but Carlos Zambrano has moved to the top of the Cubs' longevity list. At 27, he is the team's elder statesman, moving into the suite formerly occupied by Kerry Wood.

Zambrano debuted with the Cubs on Aug. 20, 2001. He has a lot of baseball ahead. So the question -- after seeing Wood leave town this winter -- is obvious: Could Zambrano ever imagine pitching for another team?

 

''No,'' he said, tapping his hand on that big ''C'' logo over his heart.

 

Then without much hesitation...

 

''Well, if I do,'' Zambrano added in a hushed voice, ''I want it to be in a White Sox uniform.''

 

What?

 

This isn't the kind of thing that will go over well with Cubs fans.

 

''I grew up as a White Sox fan. That was my favorite team,'' Zambrano said. ''I apologize to the Cubs fans for saying this, but you don't have control when you are 6, 7 years old of your feelings. Your feelings are with the team you see as a child. For me, it was the White Sox.''

 

Brace yourself. This South Side love gets worse.

 

We now take you to a remote island off the coast of Venezuela. Zambrano took his family there last offseason for a vacation. He took a seat in a seaside restaurant. Then he heard a voice boom -- in Spanish -- from across the room.

 

''Hey, Crazy, what are you doing here?''

 

Zambrano wheeled around and found Sox manager Ozzie Guillen glaring at him.

 

Time for a rumble?

 

Hardly. The two embraced, and the face of the Sox invited the face of the Cubs on his yacht for a day of fishing and some frolicking on the beach. Honest.

 

''His family and my family, we are pretty tight,'' Guillen said Monday. ''People who see Carlos on the field, they don't see the real human being he is. This guy is unbelievable -- with his family, his friends, his town, his country. This guy is one of the better people I've ever been around. I can put him at the same caliber as Jim Thome -- and that's a lot to say.

 

''I've never been around somebody who is so nice a person, then all of a sudden, the game is on and he is exactly what you want. You talk to Carlos without the uniform on, I don't know if he can pitch for me. And when you see him with a uniform on, I don't think he can be my friend.''

 

One of the craziest rumors at the winter meetings in December centered on the Cubs -- after completing a Jake Peavy trade -- sending Zambrano to the Sox.

 

Sources from both sides of town shot down the rumor, and Peavy never was dealt to Chicago. Still, it was thought-provoking. Certainly, Zambrano and Guillen have toyed with the idea of ''Big Z'' on the South Side.

 

''He talked to me about it,'' Guillen said. ''He always says he is a White Sox fan. And I say, 'Too bad we don't have the money to sign you.' He grew up watching us play. I don't want fans to take his comments wrong. I grew up a Cincinnati Reds fan, and I never got a chance to play for them. I say, 'I hope he plays for the Cubs the rest of his career.' I really do.''

 

Deep down, so does Zambrano, who has a five-year, $91.5 million contract -- with no-trade protection -- to prove his commitment.

 

''I love the Cubs,'' Zambrano said. ''Now, I like the Cubs more than the White Sox. Well, just a little bit of a feeling for the White Sox -- maybe 2 percent. But 98 percent of my feeling is for the Cubs.''

 

Overwhelmed by Wrigley Field

Zambrano brightens thinking about his first day in the big leagues, even though he got shelled in his debut. He arrived at Wrigley Field during the first game of an Aug. 20, 2001, doubleheader against the Milwaukee Brewers.

 

Stepping out of a cab near Clark and Addison, Zambrano was overwhelmed.

 

''There were a lot of people watching the game, a lot of people walking around the street,'' Zambrano said. ''To see Wrigley Field and the whole atmosphere around Wrigley Field -- the sports bars, the people -- you don't see that at Triple-A ballparks. We call Wrigley Field the 'Friendly Confines,' and it really is like that.''

 

He stayed in the clubhouse during Game 1 of the doubleheader. Scheduled to start Game 2, Zambrano was sitting in front of his locker when the Cubs trickled in. They all welcomed him before Sammy Sosa -- then the face of the franchise -- stepped in front of Zambrano's locker.

 

''It was pretty special, especially coming from such a big guy in Latin America, Sammy Sosa, telling me, 'You are in heaven now,''' Zambrano said. ''I dreamed about this, being in the Cubs organization a long time and to be the face of the Cubs. I dreamed that people would call out my name and say, 'Big Z.' It's pretty special to be a Cub, believe me.''

 

But it wasn't Sosa who had the biggest impact on Zambrano over his career. It wasn't future Hall of Famer Greg Maddux, though he certainly left an impression.

 

No, the pitcher who made the biggest impact was the same guy from Texas who chose to have his locker as far away as possible from Zambrano's in the Cubs' closet-sized clubhouse.

 

Really, Kerry Wood -- his polar opposite?

 

''Yes, Woody,'' Zambrano said. ''At first I thought he was racist or something because of the way he treated me. But I knew he wasn't like that. He was trying to teach me how to be a good guy in the big leagues. He tried to teach me how to drive myself. As I got to know him better, he was a great guy -- a special guy. Believe me, I miss Woody a lot.''

 

And to a large degree, Wood has played a part in giving us the Zambrano we know -- or thought we knew -- today.

 

''I'm a big believer in what the Bible says,'' Zambrano said. ''The Bible says when I was a child, I thought as a child, I walked as a child. But when I became a man, I matured. When you first come to the big leagues, nothing looks familiar. Wrigley Field looks funny, strange. People look strange. You're not familiar with any of this.

 

''Now, when you mature and grow up as a person and baseball player, you realize you belong here.''

 

The wild child has grown up

This grown-up Big Z is a little hard to imagine.

 

There have been enough Zambrano tantrums to stock top-10 lists. We have seen him bust bats over his knee in anger. We watched in shock as he attacked his catcher with such zeal, he sent Michael Barrett to a hospital. We can recount the times he has stormed around the mound like a madman.

 

And now this wild child is the longest-tenured Cub in uniform.

 

''He has been here for quite a while, and he has pitched a lot of innings -- on both accounts, you earn that,'' pitching coach Larry Rothschild said. ''He has matured as everybody does. A lot came to him early. And if you look at the overall picture, he has handled things pretty well.''

 

Relatively speaking.

 

There was, after all, that attack on his catcher in 2007.

 

''That was a confusing situation from both sides,'' Zambrano said. ''We both made a mistake. The good thing about this is the next day, we saw each other and hugged. It's like what people say when there's a home run, 'Kiss it goodbye.' That's it, forget about it.''

 

And then there are his antics on the mound.

 

The day after Barrett slugged Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski in 2006 during a heated crosstown series, Zambrano got into a yelling match with Sox third-base coach Joey Cora, pointing to his head. The message was clear: Zambrano was about to go head-hunting.

 

Really?

 

''No, I was just playing with [Cora],'' Zambrano said. ''I know him very well. He was with the Cubs organization when I was in the minor leagues. That was just faking, like with Ryan Dempster and Kevin Millar [trading barbs]. That was just for the papers. Nothing happened.''

 

It turns out Cora was one of Zambrano's idols. As a child, Zambrano and his brother would play baseball in the street, using bottle caps for balls. Zambrano always would be the Sox, his brother the New York Mets. They imitated the batting stance of every player.

 

''Robin Ventura, Lance Johnson, Joey Cora -- I went through the whole lineup,'' Zambrano said.

 

He smiled. Uh-oh, his heart was drifting back to the South Side.

 

You sure you want to keep that Cubs logo on your chest?

 

''Yes, I want to be here,'' he said. ''I want to finish my career here. This was the club that found me and brought me to the big leagues.

 

''When you have a father that takes care of you when you're growing up, you don't want to have another father. This is my family. This is where I would like to be. Chicago is the best place in America.''

 

http://www.suntimes.com/sports/deluca/1480...eluca17.article

For 91.5 million dollars, I'd be 98% Cubs too. That said, it'd be nice to see him in a Sox uniform, but not for 91.5 million dollars.

For 91.5 million dollars, I'd be 98% Cubs too. That said, it'd be nice to see him in a Sox uniform, but not for 91.5 million dollars.

You couldn't give me any sum of money to be a stupid cubs fan.

You couldn't give me any sum of money to be a stupid cubs fan.

 

Really? If someone was gonna just flat out give me 100 million dollars and all I had to do was root for a sports team, I would do it in a split second....

Really? If someone was gonna just flat out give me 100 million dollars and all I had to do was root for a sports team, I would do it in a split second....

No kidding.

Besides, he was signed by the Cubs from Venezuela.

 

The Sox's scouting presence in Latin America was lacking until a few years ago.

I just sent this story to all my cubs friends and coworkers, lol

Really? If someone was gonna just flat out give me 100 million dollars and all I had to do was root for a sports team, I would do it in a split second....

Really. Maybe a billion could do it actually.....

That article completely changed how I perceive Zambrano. Nice write up, very interesting. Funny that he is a Cubby fan favorite and just admitted to them that he still, at least a little, likes the White Sox

You couldn't give me any sum of money to be a stupid cubs fan.

If someone gave me Z's contract but said I had to be a Cubs, Packers, and Pistons fan, I'd go out and buy season tickets for all 3 that same day.

If someone gave me Z's contract but said I had to be a Cubs, Packers, and Pistons fan, I'd go out and buy season tickets for all 3 that same day.

 

I smell a new stimulus package!

I still dont like Z, stay away from the w'sox!!

 

His antics are no good zambrainless

If someone gave me Z's contract but said I had to be a Cubs, Packers, and Pistons fan, I'd go out and buy season tickets for all 3 that same day.

I'd cheer but theres no way I would be a "fan" of the Cubs and especially the Wolverines.

I'd cheer but theres no way I would be a "fan" of the Cubs and especially the Wolverines.

Yeah, I don't like wolverines either. Mean little animals.

 

Ha, this is the first Cubs fan response I got

 

Funny how Sox fans are so quick to rip Zambrano as being immature and inconsistent and then as soon as they hear he grew up liking the Sox they soil their shorts at the possibility of him playing on the south side. You cant have it both ways.

 

 

I made NO mention of wanting Zambrano, i just wrote "This article should warm the heart of all Cubs fans......The truth really does hurt"

 

LOL

Ozzie's friends with everyone, isn't he? I like Big Z alot, probably my favorite Cub outside of Mike Fontenot.

I'd cheer but theres no way I would be a "fan" of the Cubs and especially the Wolverines.

Nobody would know that I was faking it so it's irrelevant how much of a fan I'd actually be.

Didnt he mention this a while back, maybe like two years ago.

Didnt he mention this a while back, maybe like two years ago.

Yes he did. This is old news.

Ha, this is the first Cubs fan response I got

 

 

 

 

I made NO mention of wanting Zambrano, i just wrote "This article should warm the heart of all Cubs fans......The truth really does hurt"

 

LOL

And would we soil our shorts? Maybe, when he puts up a mid 4 ERA in the AL and is barely a #3 starter.

Really? If someone was gonna just flat out give me 100 million dollars and all I had to do was root for a sports team, I would do it in a split second....

 

I'd switch to the cubs for a hell of a lot less.

If someone gave me Z's contract but said I had to be a Cubs, Packers, and Pistons fan, I'd go out and buy season tickets for all 3 that same day.

 

For Z's money, I'd even stop posting here.

Wow the Sox best pitcher gets roasted annually for liking the Cardinals....and the cubs best pticher is a Sox fan....

Are their any current or former Sox players who were fans of the team growing up? I'm pretty sure Gload and Rowand were/are pretty big Sox guys regardless of where they're playing now.

For Z's money, I'd even stop posting here.

 

Thats a damn lie and you know it.

For Z's money, I'd even stop posting here.

 

So, who should I make the check out to? ;-)