Quantcast
Yankees CC Sabathia officially announces retirement – Metro US

Yankees CC Sabathia officially announces retirement

CC Sabathia. (Photo: Getty Images)
CC Sabathia made it official on Monday morning, announcing his retirement from Major League Baseball after 19 seasons. 
 
“I’m so thankful to have experienced this journey with every teammate past and present,” Sabathia wrote on Twitter. “All I ever wanted was to be a great teammate and win… I’m going to miss going out there on the mound and competing, but it’s time to say farewell.”
 
With a career resume that will likely lead to enshrinement in the Baseball Hall of Fame, Sabathia went 251-161 with a 3.74 ERA, 3,093 strikeouts, and a Cy Young Award in 2007. 
 
Of his 19 seasons, 11 were spent with the Yankees where he accrued a majority of his Cooperstown-worthy stats. In 306 starts, Sabathia was 134-88 with a 3.81 ERA and 1,700 strikeouts. 
 
In the franchise’s storied history, he ranks 10th in wins, 11th in innings pitched (1,918), and fourth in strikeouts.
 
Sabathia came to New York before the 2009 season as the largest pitcher available on the free-agent market. 
 
After seven-plus seasons with the Cleveland Indians which included three All-Star appearances and the 2007 Cy Young Award, Sabathia was baseball’s hottest pitcher in 2008 after his expiring contract was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers. 
 
In 17 starts, Sabathia went 11-2 with a 1.65 ERA while helping the Brewers make their first playoff appearance since 1982.
 
For a Yankees team in need of an ace, Sabathia provided just that.
 
He put them over the top as the southpaw led the American League with 19 wins in 2009 and helped New York win its first World Series since 2000. 
 
Sabathia led the American League for a second-straight year in 2010 when he posted a 21-7 record. From 2010-2012, he was named an All-Star while finishing in the top-5 of the Cy Young voting twice. 
 
The postseason wasn’t the most kind to Sabathia in 2019 as his career came to an unceremonious end in Game 4 of the ALCS against the Houston Astros. The 39-year-old was lifted prematurely from his relief outing after dislocating his shoulder.
 
The Yankees would lose the series in six games following a 103-win season. 
 
“I’m so proud of this year’s team,” he wrote. “We fought til the end. Love you guys!”
 
Regardless, Sabathia was a workhorse for the Yankees in the playoffs during his time in pinstripes, going 8-4 in 18 playoff starts to go with a 3.42 ERA.
 
He’s tied for fourth in Yankees history with eight postseason wins, fifth with 97 strikeouts, and fourth in innings pitched.