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Carl Pavano, left, and Barry Zito have shown signs this year -- small signs -- of their old form.

By Tim Kurkjian, ESPN The Magazine

Barry Zito and Carl Pavano are two pitchers who have had their ups and downs. They both had bright starts and signed big contracts before struggling for extended periods. But recently both have been showing signs of a career renaissance. And they both head to the mound Monday on a light day of action in the majors.

In spring training, one of the Giants told me that Zito was in the best shape he had ever seen him, and that his stuff had started to come back over the final month of the 2008 season. Just recently, another member of the Giants told me that he was "all the way back." I find that hard to believe because that would mean he was back to his Cy Young-winning form, and I don't think he's back that far.

He is getting better and has great pride in what he's doing. So even though as of yet, he is not what the Giants had hoped for when they signed him, he's a pretty good pitcher again. It doesn't always show because of the lack of offensive support he gets from that lineup, but he is back to being an above-average big league pitcher, which is something he hasn't always been in San Francisco.

It's not always easy pitching for the Giants these days. Last year, they became the first team since the 1993 Florida Marlins to fail to hit 100 home runs in a season. The Giants have scored the second-fewest runs (241) of any team in baseball. This doesn't excuse the way Zito's pitched during stretches of his Giants career, but sometimes when you go out and pitch knowing you aren't going to get much support, it can be difficult.

Zito's worked really hard, made all sorts of adjustments with his delivery and watched all sorts of film. He's gotten himself in really good shape and it's been paying off; he is 3-6, but with a respectable 4.09 ERA. So the thought that he signed a big contract and doesn't care anymore is just not true.

All his troubles really started when he started to lose some of the velocity on his fastball, and then his curveball wasn't what it used to be -- an unbelievable arcing curve that was almost impossible to hit. That curveball was his best pitch and it just kind of went away for a while. What helped compound the issue was the fact that when you are not throwing as hard, a curveball isn't going to be as effective because of the smaller differences in the change of speeds. But it appears that he is starting to get it back.

I had a long chat with Pavano this spring and it was pretty clear that the way he was portrayed at the end in New York as a guy who wasn't trying hard enough and didn't give his best effort with the Yankees really bothered him. He knew that he had a lot to prove to a lot of people, and this season he has been out to show that his Yankees years were lost years only because he was really hurt. He's done that for the most part this season, going 6-5 with a 5.40 ERA so far this year.

He's had a couple of really bad starts, which have greatly impacted his ERA. In May, he was another well-above-average pitcher (he was 5-1 with a 3.60 ERA). Most people didn't think he could turn it around, but I got the feeling when I spoke with him that he had confidence in himself and just needed an opportunity and perhaps a fresh start.

Offensively, I think the Indians starters will start to get more help with the return of Travis Hafner and the eventual return of Grady Sizemore. That will be a pretty good lineup.

If things keep progressing, I think both Zito and Pavano still have a chance to get close to meeting the high expectations they set earlier in their careers.

Past Baseball Tonight Clubhouses: June 11 | June 10 | June 9 | June 8 | June 7

WEB GEMS SCOREBOARD

This season, "Baseball Tonight" will be tracking Web Gems. We'll publish a leaderboard on the Baseball Tonight Clubhouse page each Monday. In addition to listing the leaders in appearances (both players and teams) on "Baseball Tonight," we'll offer up the leaders in Web Gem points.

Web Gem points will be calculated by awarding five points for the night's top defensive play, four points for second, three for third, two for fourth and one for fifth. Scoring will be based on the Web Gems from the last "Baseball Tonight" show to air on a given night.

Web Gem points leaderboard
Brandon Inge	24
Ryan Sweeney	19
Nick Punto	17
Michael Bourn	18
Carlos Gomez	18
Three tied	17

Web Gem appearances leaderboard (players)
David Wright	New York Mets	Third base	8
Brandon Inge	Detroit	Third base	8
Ryan Zimmerman	Washington	Third base	5
Ryan Sweeney	Center field	Oakland	5
Michael Bourn	Houston	Center field	5
Orlando Hudson	Second base	L.A. Dodgers	5

Web Gem appearances leaderboard (teams)
Washington	18
Texas	15
New York Mets	15
Philadelphia	15
Cincinnati	15

ON DECK: MONDAY'S MATCHUPS

Brewers at Indians, 7:05 p.m. ET

The Brewers were one of the hottest teams in baseball for much of May. The Brewers have struggled as much as any team in June. Milwaukee enters having lost six of seven and nine of 14 this month. Still, they have been able to maintain their spot atop the NL Central standings. Cleveland, meanwhile, still occupies the basement in the AL Central.

Angels at Giants, 10:15 p.m. ET

The Angels thought they were ready to take off with the return of John Lackey from the disabled list. It hasn't quite worked out that way, with Lackey struggling since making his season debut on May 16. He is 1-2 with a 6.61 ERA and is coming off a horrible outing against the Rays. He gave up 11 hits and nine runs over five innings in a 9-5 loss.

For the rest of Monday's schedule, click here.