| Barry Zito |
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| Written by Laura Lane | |||||
| Friday, May 26 2006 | |||||
Page 1 of 3
Okay, so Barry Zito and the Oakland A’s didn’t do so well in the American League playoffs. But to be honest, we couldn’t care less.We still love Zito. He is hot, talented, single and best of all – a former Trojan. That’s right. He once lived in a crappy apartment on 30th Street and ate from 99-cent tuna cans. Now with a $3-million salary, I guess you could say life has changed for Zito.The former Trojan baseball player exchanged his USC jersey for an Oakland Athletics jersey as the ninth overall pick in the 1999 draft. The left-handed pitcher soon won the Cy Young award, the most prestigious award a pitcher can receive. Although he was only a Trojan for the 1999 season as a junior before leaving for the Big Leagues, Zito was an All-American, Pac-10 Pitcher of the Year and ranked fifth in the nation. He went 12-4 with a 3.28 ERA and had 154 strikeouts in 112 2/3 innings. “He was a spectacular performer,” said USC coach Mile Gillespie. “He was an outstanding, premier, sensational pitcher. His commitment to his work was stellar. I mean the best. You come across athletes and you wish that this was the norm, but it’s abnormal.” Zito was originally drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the 59th round in 1996 and by the Texas Rangers in the third round in 1998, but in both drafts Zito decided to head to college instead. It couldn’t have been a better choice. While Zito was back in Southern California for a game against the Angels, we decided to catch up with him and reminisce about his college days at USC. And although he may be a professional baseball player with stunning good looks and a brimming wallet, he’ll always be a Trojan. |
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