Yankees: Thanks For The Memories CC, Next Stop Cooperstown

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For 19 seasons, New York Yankees P CC Sabathia was the epitome of a starting pitcher and fans must wait five years before honoring as a Hall-of-Famer.

The image is still vivid for all New York Yankees fans of CC Sabathia’s left arm dangling off to the side of his body in Game Four of the 2019 American League Championship Series (ALCS). You saw the look of desperation in his eyes as he wanted to continue battling against the Houston Astros, but the pain of his shoulder popping out of its socket was too much to handle.

Still, it’s disheartening to think this chaotic scene was the last on-field moment of Sabathia’s career. He left the diamond a wounded hero, who gave every ounce of his energy trying to win another World Series title. But that goal fell short in his final major league season.

Now, Yankees fans can thank him for the memories and wait for his next stop, Cooperstown. Sabathia’s arrival time should be in five years. But, before that happens, the evidence must be provided to validate his entrance into the Hall-of-Fame.

(Photo by Diamond Images/Getty Images) /

Sabathia Was Special Since His Major League Debut

People who watched Sabathia since his major league debut with the Cleveland Indians knew he was going to become a special talent. 2001 was his rookie season and the 20-year old went on to record a 17-5 mark with a 4.39 ERA. Sabathia finished second to Ichiro in the American League Rookie of the Year Award vote. His next career milestone came in 2007 as Sabathia won the Cy Young Award by going 19-7 with a 3.21 ERA and led the Indians to a postseason appearance.

However, October baseball was nothing more than a struggle for him. In three starts, Sabathia was dismal as he failed to attack the strike zone and got hit pretty hard. His worst performance in the 2007 playoffs was in Game 1 of the ALCS. Sabathia gave up eight runs to the Boston Red Sox in 4.1 innings and didn’t seem ready for the moment.

This misfortune was a valuable lesson in his preparation for becoming an ace of a starting rotation. Skeptics never questioned Sabathia’s ability to win a big game again, especially after leading the Milwaukee Brewers to a 2008 playoff berth. Sabathia was near perfect after being acquired from the Indians near the trade deadline. He went 11-2 with a 1.65 ERA in 17 starts.

Sabathia came to New York after signing the largest free agent (7-years/$161 million) contract ever given to a starting pitcher and he was worth every dollar. It was a perfect partnership as both sides needed to rid themselves of past October failures. Yankees general manager Brian Cashman knew the condition of his locker room was fractured and Sabathia was the perfect addition to unite a group of high-priced stars. Quickly, Sabathia earned his pinstripes, especially when the Yankees needed to end a lengthily losing streak, he was the choice to start that game. Plus, come postseason time, he took the ball on short rest with no questions asked. Sabathia’s ability to play under the bright lights of New York is what legends are made of.

Sabathia’s Career Accomplishments Aren’t to Be Taken Lightly

It’s a hard task to get 75 percent of a group to agree on anything, but Sabathia has a good chance to accomplish this feat once he becomes eligible for the Hall. You would hope his career accomplishments are enough to convince the voters that he deserves a place in Cooperstown.

Here are Sabathia’s top career accomplishments:
·      251 career wins (tied for 47th place with Bob Gibson)
·      13 consecutive seasons of 11-or-more wins (2001-13)
·      3,093 career strikeouts (16th on the all-time strikeout list)
·      560 career starts (28th on the all-time starts list)
·      2007 Cy Young Award winner
·      2009 American League Championship Series MVP
·      2009 World Series Champion

The career wins total is quite impressive, especially when you consider that Sabathia ended his playing career in the era in which the role of the starting pitcher eroded into openers and pitch count limits. You get the feeling that no other starting pitcher will eclipse Sabathia’s mark any time soon. The closest active pitcher to him in career wins is Justin Verlander (225), who has an outside of overtaking Sabathia, provided he can stay healthy.

The one accomplishment that stands out from the others is the 13 seasons of 11-or-more wins. It shows that Sabathia was durable besides being quite good. He went 205-115 over this period, which averages out to 16 wins-per-season. Another impressive accomplishment for Sabathia is being the third left-handed pitcher (Steve Carlton and Randy Johnson) in baseball history to record 3,000 or more strikeouts in a career. That’s a lot of swings and misses for one person.

October is When Sabathia Shined Brightest

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October is when Sabathia shined the brightest as he provided lasting postseason memories for all Yankees fans. His first big moment came against the Los Angeles Angels in the 2009 ALCS. Simply, Sabathia was dominant as he went 2-0 with a 1.13 ERA. In the series pivotal Game Four, Sabathia pitched eight strong innings on three days rest in a 10-1 win. This victory propelled the Yankees to their 27th World Series championship.

Another memorable postseason performance came in a losing effort against the Houston Astros in the 2017 ALCS. Sabathia was the rock of the Yankees starting rotation until the velocity of his fastball began to dip. After a long, frustrating process, Sabathia reinvented himself into becoming a more complete pitcher that needed to hit his spots to be effective on the mound. Sabathia was brilliant against the Astros as he allowed only one run in 9.1 innings pitched with an 0.96 ERA for the series.

No question that Sabathia will be enshrined in Monument Park at Yankee Stadium as his No. 52 will be retired and a plaque in his honor will hang next to other legends. These accolades will confirm Sabathia’s place in Yankee history.

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Sabathia overcame a lot of adversity over the last few seasons as he became an often-injured, broken down version of his former self. However, for the majority of his 19-year career, Sabathia was the perfect definition of what a HOF pitcher looks like on a mound.

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