Getty CC Sabathia of the New York Yankees walks off the field after the first inning.
Veteran Yankees’ pitcher CC Sabathia has put together a Hall of Fame-worthy career over the course of his 19 years in the MLB. With Sabathia set to retire at the end of this season, the MLB is calling on the big lefty to toss out the first pitch of the 2019 All-Star game and invited him to take part in the All-Star week festivities. The 2019 All-Star game is taking place in Cleveland where Sabathia got his start in the big leagues – making things all the more special for the future Hall of Famer.
So far in 2019, Sabathia holds a record of 5-4 with a 4.03 ERA across 76 innings. While not necessarily All-Star numbers, those are nothing to write home for when talking about a 38-year-old former flamethrower.
CC Sabathia All-Star Game Tribute: Yankees Pitcher’s Career Honored [WATCH]
It was an emotional moment for the big lefty as his retirement tour has been relatively unceremonious. While a sure-fire Hall of Famer, Sabathia’s final season has mostly flown under the radar – probably the way he prefers it. However, it was nice to see Sabathia get his moment of recognition from the league for nearly two decades of playing the game the right way.
Surprisingly, the first pitch didn’t make the national broadcast and Sabathia’s introduction to the fans in Cleveland – where he started his career – was cut short. As a result, unless you were in attendance, Sabathia’s tribute went mostly unnoticed!
CC Sabathia Career Highlights
First cracking into the big leagues as a 20-year-old phenom on the Cleveland Indians, Sabathia would quickly establish himself as one of the league’s premier pitchers by fininshing second in Rookie of the Year voting in 2001 behind a stellar 17-5 record. Sabathia would go on to have seven and a half incredibly productive seasons for the Tribe – culminating in a Cy Young award during his 2007 campaign.
Traded to the Brewers as a rental midway through the 2008 season, Sabathia was the key piece to Milwaukee’s first playoff appearance in 26 years as he went a stellar 11-2 with a 1.65 ERA after being traded to the Brewers.
Sabathia would sign with the Yankees in free agency and taste World Series glory the following year in 2009 and go on to be the ace of the staff for a dominant four-year stretch until injuries started to take their toll. While Sabathia has slowly declined over the past half-decade, he has re-tooled his pitching style to help curb the effects of Father Time and has remained a quality contributor on the Yankees’ staff – even serving as a crucial stopper in their surprise 2017 ALCS run at the age of 36.
Sabathia will finish his career in elite company as he owns over 250 wins and 3,000 strikeouts.