Zambrano – Im not hurt

Chicago Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano claims his shoulder is just fine. There have been rumors lately that his shoulder is bothering him. Supposedly, Zambrano has been experiencing neck stiffness, and the soreness radiates down to the area where the neck and shoulder meet. Another reason, some may think he’s hurt is the sub-par start he turned in last week against the Pittsburgh Pirates. When you talk to Zambrano thou, he’s going to show everyone how healthy he is Friday night, against those same Pirates. ”My shoulder’s fine,” Zambrano said. ”I’ll show you Friday.”

Carlos had his bullpen session on Tuesday afternoon, and its reported by the Chicago Sun-Times that he looked overly strong. They also report that he was joking with the media Wednesday, acting like he was hurt and having a trainer give him a shoulder massage. ”There’s never even been a question of concern,” manager Lou Piniella said. ”I’m more concerned about my shoulder than I am his. [Pitching coach] Larry Rothschild told me [Tuesday] he had the best throw day he’s had all year.”

It’s good that there is actually nothing wrong with Zambrano, as he’s having arguably the best season of his career. He currently sports a 6-1 record with a 2.45 era, having struck out 46 batters over 66 innings. I believe the reason for the improvement this season (scary thought with him), is his control. His walks are down considerably, as he’s only walked 19 batters. He’s on pace for his lowest walk total in his career. I’ve seen a few of his starts this year and it seems like he’s become more of a pitcher then just a guy who’s over powering batters, and letting his emotions get the better of him. Another impressive stat, since I’m on a stats kick right now, 8 quality starts in 10 games.

Here’s a link to the Chicago Sun-Times article. Photo courtesy of Usatoday.com

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Tags: Chicago Cubs, MLB