Carlos Zambrano : The Miami Marlins are counting on excitable Ozzie Guillen to have a calming influence on quarrelsome Carlos Zambrano.The plan may sound crazy, but say this for the Marlins: They've become harder to ignore.
Their latest offseason move was approved Thursday, when they acquired Carlos Zambrano from the Chicago Cubs for underachieving right-hander Chris Volstad. The Marlins believe Zambrano's career can be resuscitated by pairing him with fellow Venezuelan and good friend Guillen, the team's new manager.
"Ozzie has a long and close relationship with Carlos Zambrano," president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest said. "We went with Ozzie on this one. The bottom line was Ozzie just really, really felt confident about this deal."
In Chicago, Zambrano was a three-time All-Star, but he also feuded with teammates, management and umpires. The final straw came Aug. 12, when he was ejected from a game, cleaned out his locker and was suspended without pay.
In Miami, Beinfest hopes for the best but will be braced for a repeat.
"It would hard for me to say everything is going to be perfect and incident-free, given the guy's history," Beinfest said. "It may happen that he has a blowup or two. But Ozzie is very confident he can help him."
Those meetings on the mound should be entertaining. While managing the Chicago White Sox, Guillen underwent sensitivity training. On the north side of town, Zambrano attended anger management sessions. In 2010, Zambrano had a verbal altercation with then-teammate Derrek Lee, then dined that night with Guillen.
As part of the trade, the Marlins will pay $2.55 million of Zambrano's $18 million salary this year. The Cubs are responsible for the rest.
Volstad has a career record of 32-39 with a 4.59 ERA in four big league seasons. He was originally the Marlins' first-round pick in 2005.
"We've all been a little bit baffled by some of Chris' inconsistencies," Beinfest said.
CBSSports.com insider Jon Heyman says the trade represents a fresh start for both right-handers.
"Guillen had been begging his new Marlins bosses to acquire Zambrano, and this was one (of many) wishes they could fulfill; the Cubs were even more desperate to be rid of him," Heyman writes. "Volstad needs to find his way, too. The 6-foot-8 right-hander from South Florida may do better away from home. He showed tremendous promise his first year in Florida but only flashes since. It shouldn't be too late for him, either. He's only 25."
"Ozzie has a long and close relationship with Carlos Zambrano," president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest said. "We went with Ozzie on this one. The bottom line was Ozzie just really, really felt confident about this deal."
In Chicago, Zambrano was a three-time All-Star, but he also feuded with teammates, management and umpires. The final straw came Aug. 12, when he was ejected from a game, cleaned out his locker and was suspended without pay.
In Miami, Beinfest hopes for the best but will be braced for a repeat.
"It would hard for me to say everything is going to be perfect and incident-free, given the guy's history," Beinfest said. "It may happen that he has a blowup or two. But Ozzie is very confident he can help him."
Those meetings on the mound should be entertaining. While managing the Chicago White Sox, Guillen underwent sensitivity training. On the north side of town, Zambrano attended anger management sessions. In 2010, Zambrano had a verbal altercation with then-teammate Derrek Lee, then dined that night with Guillen.
As part of the trade, the Marlins will pay $2.55 million of Zambrano's $18 million salary this year. The Cubs are responsible for the rest.
Volstad has a career record of 32-39 with a 4.59 ERA in four big league seasons. He was originally the Marlins' first-round pick in 2005.
"We've all been a little bit baffled by some of Chris' inconsistencies," Beinfest said.
CBSSports.com insider Jon Heyman says the trade represents a fresh start for both right-handers.
"Guillen had been begging his new Marlins bosses to acquire Zambrano, and this was one (of many) wishes they could fulfill; the Cubs were even more desperate to be rid of him," Heyman writes. "Volstad needs to find his way, too. The 6-foot-8 right-hander from South Florida may do better away from home. He showed tremendous promise his first year in Florida but only flashes since. It shouldn't be too late for him, either. He's only 25."
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