Surf's Up For Pitching Aces

Apr 01 2007 / Los Angeles, CA

Barry Zito is clearly a household name by now.  A Cy Young award, regular all-star appearances, and persistent interest from the New York Yankees will do that to a professional athlete.  The name Kevin Correia isn’t as well-known, but in a short time it very well could be.  These two Major League Baseball pitchers have two very important things in common: They both deal hard on the mound, and they both shred waves (San Diego Padres pitcher David Wells, who might not look the part, is also a big surfer).

The two pitchers had different starts to their surfing lives.  Correia, who grew up in San Diego, started at a young age and found himself receiving free schwag from surf companies before reaching the university level. 

Zito didn’t get started until his college days at UC Santa Barbara, but quickly embraced the sport of surfing to the point where he literally de-virginized (with help from fellow major leaguers Ryan Klesko and Brent Mayne) some amazing reef breaks off the coast of Fiji.  Zito also finds time jamming his guitar in a band when he isn’t playing baseball or catching waves.

And perhaps the most amazing thing about these two young pitchers is the fact that neither one of them have ever suffered a major injury.  In fact, Barry Zito has never missed a scheduled start.  Interesting note considering they both love to paddle extensively during the off-season. 

I sat down with Zito and Correia to talk about their biggest passion off the mound: Surfing.

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Lat34: How did you get into surfing, and how long have you been doing it?

Zito: I’ve been doing it since ‘96.  I went to UC Santa Barbara and I started surfing as a freshman there.  I learned on a 6' 4'’, which was pretty small considering that I was 6' 4'’ myself and about 200 pounds.  But I do it every off-season.  I’ve gone to Tavarua, Fiji, and also Costa Rica.  I only surf two to three months a year, so it’s hard to build up a lot of skill when you’re basically surfing about a fifth of the year.

Correia: I grew up in San Diego and surfed a lot at Pacific Beach and La Jolla mainly.  I worked at a surf shop down there that kind of sponsored me, right in Pacific Beach.  So I spent a lot of time down there either working or surfing right out front.

Correia: Just at a little surf shop where me and my buddies used to hang around when we were little.  They started hooking us up with some boards and some wet suits.  So it worked out pretty well for us.

Lat34: Last time I talked to you Barry was at the end of last season.  You mentioned that the only time you have to surf is during the off-season.  How was last winter?

Zito: You know, I actually got in the water (only) once.  I was remodeling a house and never knew what kind of work that entailed until I did it.  So yeah, I surfed one day but I got overhead (conditions) in San Diego at Scripps (Pier) and it was a good day man, one for one.

Zito: I got to become friends with Rusty Preisendorfer and the guy just shapes unreal boards.  He makes a board called the Piranha, and it’s kind of like a modified fish.  It’s not as wide at the nose, but it still floats me pretty well, seeing as how I’m 210 pounds.  (The Piranha) is about 6'8'’, and  I also have a 6' 11'’ that’s a little narrower.

Correia: Anywhere between a 6' 3'’ and a 6' 4'’ is what I like to ride.  Right now I think I have both a 6' 3'’ and a 6' 4'’.  One of the boards is a Lost.  I just tried to order a couple of boards towards the end of the baseball season so that they’re ready for the off-season.  I’ll get it from the surf shop I used to work for.  They got a pretty good shaper there.  If one of my buddies is riding a good board, I’ll try it and buy one of those.  I’m not real picky on one thing.  I like to try different styles of boards.  Fishes, anything I can ride I think are fun. 

Lat34: Barry, you were telling me the last time we spoke that you actually de-virginized a wave out in Tavarua, Fiji.

Zito: Yeah, we were there with Ryan Klesko, Brent Mayne (fellow Major League Baseball players) and our friend Rusty out at Tavvy (Tavarua).  It’s total bliss, but we were having a tough time getting waves.  We got head high the first day, and after that we got shut out.  Total crap for three days.  We chipped in and took a sea plane for about an hour and a half out to one of the remote islands of Fiji and surfed some reefs that were only scuba dived in the past.  It blew me away, land wasn’t even 10 miles away.  You’re sitting in the water, it’s 90 degrees, there’s as much food as you can imagine on the boat right outside the break.  And it’s like eight to ten foot faces, perfect rights.

Then last winter, they came out (with a story) on the cover of I think Surfer magazine about how (Rob) Machado and a couple of other guys had discovered this secret wave.  It turned out that we had already surfed (that wave)!

Lat34: Do you attribute surfing to your durability and to the fact that you never get injured? 

Zito: You know, I’m sure there’s some type of correlation.  I haven’t really made one, but I know that swimming is good for the tendons in the shoulder.  It obviously builds up the back of the shoulder, which are the decelerators, and those are the ones that get hurt.  They’re basically the brakes to the mechanism.  But if you’re not in surfing shape and you surf some waves bro, you’re done.  You can’t paddle out after a half hour of paddling.  You’re done.  Once you’re in shape you realize how much strength it takes to be paddling out and beating those waves.

Correia: I’ve been doing it my whole life, and I’ve never had a major injury before, and I think if anything it benefits my baseball (skills) from the paddling around.  It strengthens the shoulder for the season. 

Lat34: Is there something in your contract that limits how much you can surf?  Is it considered to be a hazardous hobby for you, or are you free to do as you wish?

Zito: No, you can do as you wish, as long as it’s in your contract.  Fortunately it is in my contract.  I got it in my contract to where I can surf whatever, and my contract won’t be voided.  Of course, I use discretion, and I only get in the water during the off-season.  Technically I could probably break my face surfing and still get paid, but I don’t want to pull any of that stuff.

Correia: (Surfing) is really a (safe) sport, unlike the other ones like snowboarding and stuff where you can fall and dislocate a shoulder.  You can get hurt doing anything, and I don’t think (the team) wants you to do anything that will get you hurt, but I don’t think (surfing) is a real big concern.  

Lat34: Barry, there’s a strong possibility you’re going to leave Oakland next year.  It’s part of the business.  Keep in mind, if you do go to New York, there aren’t too many beaches to surf.

Zito: (Laughs) Yeah, (maybe) Jersey shores, I don’t even know.  I’ve seen some pretty hectic pictures where it looks like the water’s just black out there.  It looks like the water’s 45 degrees, and these crazy guys are surfing out there. 

Zito: Um, yeah, I’m not too sure.  I’m involved right now, and I’m having fun, and she’s a great girl.  I don’t know if you can ever settle down with this lifestyle.  It’s tough, it takes its toll having a long-distance relationship.  But I’m happy and taking every day one day at a time. 

Lat34: My church is the ocean.  A mountain peak in the wintertime with a board strapped to my feet is a close second, but the ocean’s my church.  It’s just so serene out there.  Is that the same reason why you surf?  Does it bring inner-peace to you in addition to just having fun?

Zito: It does.  I think you just forget about all the worries of the day.  Any kind of stresses you have just go away for a couple of hours while you’re out there.  Some people use drugs and alcohol to get away from those things.  You can get the same kind of effect going out into the ocean. 

Correia: It’s definitely one of my favorite hobbies.  I grew up doing it, and it’s one those things that I just love to do.

Lat34: Barry, I don’t know if you’ve ever seen the movie Dazed and Confused.

Lat34: There’s a great scene in it where the quarterback Randall “Pink” Floyd talks about how him and his friends could score just as many girls if they were in a band as they do on the football team.  In your case, the money might be a little different, but do you think that you could probably live just as good of a life being in a band and surfing waves, as you do throwing strikes on the mound?  Or are you content doing what you do?

Zito: If everything was the same.  The money, everything, I still think it’s different.  If you’re a musician, you can afford to abuse your body in a way that couldn’t get away with in baseball for more than one season, probably.  You can go to the nth degree with that lifestyle, so depending on the person there’s pluses and minuses in that aspect.

-Cyrus Saatsaz