Happy Birthday Carlos, You're a Big Boy Now

By Mike Maguire | Jun 01, 3:25 PM

Carlos Zambrano celebrated his 26^th birthday on Friday by getting shelled by the Braves for 7 runs on 13 hits over 5 brutal innings.  Though Zambrano’s birthday was dominated by warm breezes and blue skies, a violent storm cloud still managed to cast a dark shadow over the festivities.

When you look at the 13-hits allowed, you may think that Zambrano’s birthday was a Pinata themed party; Carlos was hit early and often until he exploded.  But one could also make the case that the theme of Zambrano’s 26^th had to have been “it’s my party and I’ll cry if I want to.”  With all of the physical gifts that Zambrano has been blessed with over the years, it is a shame that he has yet to receive the gift of maturity. 

Upon being yanked from the game after surrendering five runs in the fifth, Zambrano sought out catcher Michael Barrett and vented his frustrations by engaging Barrett in a shouting match that evolved into a shoving match.  Both Barrett and Zambrano were restrained by teammates before any physical damage could be done, but rest assured, this was the type of incident that can cut deep.

With the dugout fight between Carlos Zambrano and Michael Barrett occurring front and center in the public eye, the Cubs and their manager can expect a steady media frenzy in the following days, weeks and even months to come.  God only knows if Zambrano and Barrett (a pair of card-carrying hotheads) will ever bury the hatchet, and that kind of disharmony can also be a serious distraction to a club that already has enough trouble focusing on the task at hand. 

Make no mistake about it; it is going to take some time to let all of this nasty water flow under the bridge.  Unfortunately, it is now June 1^st and the Cubs record has sunk to 22-30. In short, time is already beginning to run out. 

The Cubs went on to lose on Friday by a score of 8-5.  Their 5th consecutive loss dropped them to a season worst 8-games under .500.  I guess the only silver lining here is that if this rock bottom, I don’t know what is.  Let the healing begin.