LHP CC Sabathia has given the New York Yankees organization his all. Now, it’s time for a final sacrifice, an earlier-than-expected retirement.
The New York Yankees and their fanbase could not have asked for a better player to represent their franchise than 38-year-old LHP CC Sabathia. However, after a third stint on the IL this season with right knee inflammation and subpar performance on the mound, it’s time for the big guy to take one for the team.
Prior to this season, Sabathia announced that he would retire at the end of the 2019 MLB season. The hope for the southpaw was to help the Yankees achieve their 28th World Series title, the second in Sabathia’s tenure with the team.
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However, this season, the southpaw just hasn’t been good. His 5-8 record has yielded a .385 W-L%, the second worse of his illustrious 19-year career. And his 4.93 ERA and 5.97 FIP are by far the worst of his entire career.
Sure, there have been moments this season when Sabathia has shown value to the organization, but most of that has come off the field. There’s no question that Sabathia’s presence within the clubhouse and in the dugout is a plus for the team and what I’m proposing is for the Yankees and Sabathia to come to an agreement on more of a bench role; a bench coach or pitching coach of some sort.
With Domingo German elevating his game to a new level this season, James Paxton finally coming to his own in New York, and Luis Severino‘s imminent return, there’s just no room for a guy like Sabathia in the rotation anymore. And if the goal this season is to snap a decade-long World Series slump, the team just can’t risk sending CC to the mound anymore.
Earlier this week, I wrote about how the moves Brian Cashman didn’t make have benefitted the New York Yankees so far this season. Now, it’s time to abide by the rules of addition by subtraction — at least when it comes to performance on the field.