| Tyler Zombro | |
|---|---|
 Zombro interviewed about his injury in 2021 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: (1994-09-02)September 2, 1994 (age 30) Harrisonburg, Virginia, U.S. | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
Tyler Zombro (born September 2, 1994) is an American formerprofessional baseballpitcher. He playedcollege baseball forGeorge Mason University before signing with theTampa Bay Rays as anundraftedfree agent in 2017. Zombro survived aseizure andfractured skull sustained when he was hit in the head by a 104-mile-per-hour (167 km/h)line drive during a game in 2021. Zombro retired during the 2024 season.
Zombro attendedRobert E. Lee High School inStaunton, Virginia, graduating in 2013. He played for the school's baseball team and had a .505batting average.[1] He attendedGeorge Mason University and playedcollege baseball for theGeorge Mason Patriots as apitcher. As a freshman, he was named to theAtlantic 10 Conference's all-rookie team.[2] After the season, Zombro playedcollegiate summer baseball for theStaunton Braves of theValley Baseball League.[3]
In his sophomore year at George Mason, Zombro had a 7–2win-loss record and a 4.20earned run average (ERA).[2] He signed a temporary contract with theWareham Gatemen of theCape Cod League in the 2015 summer season, but was released after making two appearances as other contracted players arrived and Wareham needed to stay within the roster limit.[3][4] Zombrostarted 14 games in his junior year at George Mason. In his senior year, Zombro had a 6–2 record with a 2.78 ERA in 15 starts and fivesaves.[2][5] For his four-year career at George Mason, he had a 3.28 ERA with 226strikeouts in318+1⁄3innings pitched.[6]
Zombro was not selected in the2017 Major League Baseball draft.[5] Two weeks later, he signed with theTampa Bay Rays as an undraftedfree agent.[7] He made one appearance for theGulf Coast Rays of theRookie-levelGulf Coast League and spent the rest of the season with thePrinceton Rays of the Rookie-levelAppalachian League, making 13 appearances for Princeton.[8][9] In 2018, Zombro pitched for theBowling Green Hot Rods of theSingle-AMidwest League,[10] and he had an 8–2 record and a 2.84 ERA, paired with 54 strikeouts against eightwalks in 76 innings pitched.[11] The Rays had Zombro start the 2019 season with theMontgomery Biscuits of theDouble-ASouthern League, and was named the league'srelief pitcher of the month in June.[12] He had a 2–0 record, a 1.87 ERA, and 11 saves, while striking out 53 and walking seven in57+2⁄3 innings for Montgomery,[11] was promoted to theDurham Bulls of theTriple-AInternational League during the 2019 season. The Rays named Zombro their minor league relief pitcher of the year.[6] The Rays invited Zombro tospring training in 2020 as a non-roster player,[11] but the 2020 season was cancelled due to theCOVID-19 pandemic. Zombro received a non-roster invitation to spring training with the Rays in 2021,[13] and he returned to Durham for the 2021 season.[5]
During Durham's game on June 3, 2021, atDurham Bulls Athletic Park, Zombro was pitching againstBrett Cumberland of theNorfolk Tides. He threw a 90.6-mile-per-hour (145.8 km/h)sinking fastball, which Cumberland hit. Theline drive hit Zombro in the head, above his right ear, at 104 miles per hour (167 km/h). Zombro immediately lost consciousness and fell face-first on thepitcher's mound, as he was having aseizure.[5] Zombro was taken off the field on a stretcher and brought toDuke University Hospital for surgery to repair askull fracture.[14] Surgeons inserted 16titanium plates and 36 screws during a2+1⁄2-hour operation to repair thetemporal bone and reduceintracerebral hemorrhaging andintracranial pressure.[5][15] The game was suspended and later declared final.[16] Zombro spent four days in theintensive care unit and another two days being monitored before he was discharged from the hospital on June 9.[5][14] He has no memory of the incident.[15]
After his discharge from the hospital, Zombro underwentphysical therapy,speech therapy, andoccupational therapy. ACT scan performed in December 2021 showed that the fracture had completely healed, clearing Zombro to return to baseball.[15] Zombro reported to minor league spring training in March 2022.[17] He is wearing protective head gear made fromkevlar under hisbaseball cap, with a small piece that sticks out to cover hiszygomatic bone.[15] Zombro threw abatting practice to Rays hitters for the first time since the injury on March 10, pitched an inning in an intrasquad game on March 14, and appeared in a spring training game against theBoston Red Sox on March 22, retiring both batters he faced.[18] The Bulls added him to their active roster on April 21.[19] Zombro appeared in his first game since the injury on April 24, pitching a scoreless inning in relief for Durham against Norfolk.[20] In June, Zombro had surgery to correctthoracic outlet syndrome, ending his 2022 season.[21] Zombro was released by the Rays organization on March 26, 2023.[22]
On May 19, 2023, Zombro signed a minor league contract with theTexas Rangers organization, and was assigned to theTriple-ARound Rock Express.[23] He made two scoreless appearances for the Triple–ARound Rock Express and became a free agent following the season on November 6.[24]
On November 22, 2023, Zombro re-signed with the Rangers on a new minor league contract.[25] He did not appear in a game during the 2024 season, as he was dealing with "consistent nerve issues," and he announced his retirement oversocial media on August 23, 2024.[26]
On November 18, 2024, theChicago Cubs hired Zombro to serve as a special assistant within their organization.[27]
Zombro's wife, Moriah, is aregistered nurse.[5] She graduated from Lee High School andJames Madison University (JMU), and has worked intravel nursing.[8] Zombro's parents both graduated fromBridgewater College, where his father played baseball and his mother played basketball and volleyball.[5][8] His grandfather, Melvin "Wimpy" Zombro, played inAmerican Legion Baseball's adult division and continued playing baseball into his 80s.[1]
Zombro got intobaseball analytics while he was in college. He started working as a trainer with R&D Baseball Academy in theWashington metropolitan area while he was in college,[2] and converted it into a full-time job while playing professional baseball. Zombro has worked with pitchers from JMU and theUniversity of Virginia, as well as professional players, includingMatt Bowman andSam McWilliams, a teammate with Montgomery.[11] Zombro also works with Tread Athletics, a training facility based inCharlotte, North Carolina.[5]