Hendry Hopes The 'Final Light Went On' For Zambrano
Last season was quite the whirlwind for Carlos Zambrano. In fact, most of his career has gone that way.
But as spring training gets underway this week in Mesa, Arizona, it appears General Manager Jim Hendry is once again in Zambrano's corner and is optimistic for this season.
"We did see him periodically over the offseason. He's in good shape," Hendry told Matt Spiegel and Barry Rozner Sunday morning on Hit and Run. "Mike (Quade) has a good relationship with him. Let's just hope for the best. Are we gonna sit there and say he'll never have a slip up again? I wouldnt go that far, but for the most part I think we would all take the Carlos Zambrono we saw the 2nd half last year, not only the quality of work, but also the interaction in the clubhouse and the way he carried himself on and off the field."
Listen to Jim Hendry on Hit & Run
Podcast
Hendry also admitted that last June wasn't the first time they've dealt with Zambrano's pychological issues.
"It's not something that was instituted for the first time last June," he said. "We've always been on top of it and the young man is not too old to turn some of those things around and like I said, he's got a lot of good things about him, a lot of good decency to him. He does a lot for people off the field so we're hoping the final light went on and he can maintain the track he was on the last three months of the season."
Hendry also spoke on the possibility of adding big money contracts and his relationship with Ryne Sandberg. Listen to the entire interview above.
