Oakland A's legend Barry Zito once resorted to smoking weed to cope with media scrutiny in the autumn of his career

Barry Zito, a legend with the Oakland Athletics, once turned to marijuana use in the latter stages of his playing career to deal with media scrutiny.

In excerpts from his autobiography "Curveball," Zito disclosed that he resorted to smoking weed to cope with media scrutiny:

"Being portrayed by the media as a onetime dominant pitcher who was 'losing his mojo' created inner turmoil that I tried to numb out by smoking weed ... The THC, coupled with calming music, helped me fend off the voices in my head that told me I would forever fall short of the expectations of being a Cy Young-caliber pitcher again."

Former American League Cy Young Award winner Zito was asked to play for the Athletics for the last two weeks of the Major League Baseball season after spending the entire 2015 campaign in Triple-A.

"#Athletics select Barry Zito from Nashville, recall Cody Martin from Nashville, place Jesse Chavez on the 60-day DL" - Oakland A's

Zito won the World Series in 2010 and 2012 with the New York Giants, but from 2000 to 2006, Oakland was where he had the most success.

San Francisco Giants v Oakland Athletics

In 222 starts between 2002 and 2004, he had an ERA of 3.55 and earned the Cy Young Award.

Justin Verlander was defeated by Barry Zito

Zito defeated Detroit Tigers star Verlander in Game 1 of his first career World Series, which paved the way for San Francisco to sweep the series and win its sixth World Series. Despite Zito's struggles in 2013, the crowd applauded him when he played in his final game for the Giants. After the season, he became a free agent.

"... your self worth no greater. Who can say that? You can Buster. Thanks for all you did for us who love this great game of baseball." - Barry Zito

Zito is a philanthropist who started Strikeouts For Soldiers, a nationwide non-profit that supports military families and gives injured soldiers the comfort of home to boost their spirits and morale. Zito participated in The Masked Singer's third season in 2020.