Barry Zito Has Found Christianity And Guns

In the off-season, Tim Lincecum found a newer, more mature look for himself, and now the Giants other bro-starter has followed suit. Barry Zito, once of " stabbin' cabin" fame, is transforming himself from the poster boy of Bay Area chill to a full red-blooded American. First up: religion.

From Zito's GQ this week:

I've found something that I just really love, which is the Christian faith, and it's new to me. I grew up being a seeker and being completely out of the box and testing and reading and trying all different religious things and kind of philosophical approaches and such, and it's kind of a backwards route. Most people are raised very rigidly in an organized religion and then they try to fight their way out of that. I needed structure [laughs]. A lot of these kind of spiritual things are all based on the self and that was just too—I couldn't handle that anymore. I don't know. I think it led to a form of—it can lead to narcissism, I think.

He's been reading a lot of C.S. Lewis, and a turn to religion for the 34-year-old makes some sense, considering he's how much shit he's gotten for his busted contract.

But that's not all. Step two for his metamorphosis: A new passion for shooting things. "I think when you have a family and you understand that you have so much to lose if some lunatic is gonna come off the street and try to do something in your home, it makes you feel a little better to know that I'll be able to defend my family," he said.

GQ writer Nathaniel Penn sympathized. He told Zito that he had an intruder in his apartment recently, and he's kept a baseball bat by his bed ever since. Zito responded:

A baseball bat's probably not gonna get it done, dude. I hate to tell you, because if homeboy's got a gun.... Yeah, man, it's not a safe world out there, dude.

Calling people "dude" is always the last thing to go.

[ GQ]

Photo Credit: Getty