Carlos Zambrano

Who is Carlos Zambrano?

Carlos Alberto Zambrano, nicknamed "Big Z" or "El Toro", is a Venezuelan professional baseball pitcher, who is currently a free agent. Zambrano, who stands 6 feet 4 inches and weighs 275 pounds, was signed by the Cubs as a free agent in 1997 and made his debut in 2001. After being used in both starting and relief duties, he enjoyed his first full season as a starter in 2003, finishing with a 13–11 record, 168 strikeouts and a 3.11 ERA.

The controversial pitcher is known as one of the best hitting pitchers of recent times. He is a switch-hitter and has a career .238 batting average with 24 home runs, 71 RBIs and a slugging percentage of .396. The 23 home runs are the most ever by a Cubs pitcher, as well as also being the active leader in home runs hit by a pitcher. He also tied with Ferguson Jenkins for the club record for home runs by a pitcher in a single season, hitting six in 2006. Zambrano has been called on to pinch hit 20 times in his career and has won a Silver Slugger Award three times for his hitting.

Zambrano was the only National League pitcher to have won at least 13 games in each year from 2003 to 2008.