Matt Cain is a three-time World Series champion. He once launched a golf ball into McCovey Cove and then went out and threw a perfect game. He won 104 games for the Giants over 13 seasons, becoming one of the most beloved leaders in the franchise's history.
Oh, he also is apparently an avid watcher of "The Masked Singer."
A day after it was revealed that he had been eliminated from the show, Barry "The Rhino" Zito told Yahoo Sports that some former Giants teammates were onto him as he crooned in a rhino mask and flight jacket.
"Oh, absolutely. Matt Cain was the first one to be hot on the trail," Zito said. "He was like, 'Dude, I'm watching this show, this really sounds like you. Are you The Rhino?' I'd tell him, that's crazy, what show is that? It was pretty fun to try to figure out strategies to make them think I had no clue what they were talking about."
It wasn't exactly a stunner when Zito pulled the mask off to reveal his true identity. A lot of Twitter users and Giants fans had already figured it out, with Zito -- excuse me, The Rhino -- dropping clues such as referring to himself as a "gentle giant."
🚨 SPOILER ALERT 🚨 #RhinoMask is...#TheMaskedSinger pic.twitter.com/Y3Hxxpchr1
— The Masked Singer (@MaskedSingerFOX) May 14, 2020
Since retiring, Zito has focused on his music career, releasing new tracks and even performing outside Oracle Park last season. His affinity for music is well-known among former Giants, and he said he received a lot of texts from past teammates on both sides of the Bay, including one from his longtime manager.
"Bruce Bochy actualy texted me today," Zito told Yahoo. "He said, 'Hey, you did a great job, super awesome. Congrats on the new baby.'"
Zito finished fourth on the show this season, but he said he achieved his goals. He told himself at the beginning to have fun and make it past the first song, and he did both. The man who has spent most of his adult life performing in front of tens of thousands of fans also learned a valuable lesson: It's a lot harder to take center stage when you have a rhino head on.
"It was so hot in there," he said. "We just had layers and layers of clothing underneath. A lot of times you were in that costume for 30-45 minutes at a time, just overheating in there."
[GIANTS INSIDER PODCAST: Listen to the latest episode]