Victor Zambrano had his moments of brilliance for the Tampa Bay Rays. He arrived on the scene as a 25 year old rookie in 2001 as a reliever, and posted a 6-2 record with a 3.16 ERA and a 1.091 WHiP. In his 51.1 innings, he struck out 58 batters and issued only 18 walks. Zambrano seemed as though he would be a weapon as a reliever, someone that the Rays could build their bullpen around.
Desperate for anything resembling a competent starter, the Rays Zambrano into the rotation over the final two months of the 2002 campaign.