New York Yankees left-hander CC Sabathia simply could not continue in the eighth inning of Game 4 of the ALCS. Although Sabathia had nearly pitched the Yankees out of yet another jam, he was experiencing discomfort after getting Houston Astros infielder Aledmys Diaz to pop out to second base.
The training staff came out to look at Sabathia, and he threw one final warmup pitch in front of the crowd. Just like that, however, his career came to an end.
Sabathia was replaced on the ALCS roster earlier on Friday, making him ineligible to pitch for the remainder of the postseason. Given that he had already announced that he would be retiring after the 2019 season, Thursday night marked Sabathia's final appearance in the majors.
As it turned out, he literally pitched until his body fell apart. During his individual media session on Friday, Sabathia revealed he suffered a dislocated shoulder at some point during the eighth inning:
CC Sabathia said he subluxed his shoulder on a pitch to Aledmys Díaz. Meaning he threw three pitches to George Springer with a partially separated shoulder.
“I threw until I couldn’t anymore,” he said.
At the end, he said, it took 2 1/2 hours to get his body ready to pitch. pic.twitter.com/Nf7x8X02ks
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 18, 2019
Toughness and tenacity are nothing new for Sabathia. The one-time Cy Young winner was dominant in his first four seasons in The Bronx (2009-12), but he posted a 4.78 ERA ERA in 2013 and missed nearly all of 2014 due to injuries.
However, Sabathia revitalized his career, posting three consecutive seasons with a sub-4.00 ERA and anchoring New York's rotation with his leadership.
Analysts and colleagues lauded Sabathia for his dedication on Thursday night. Former Yankees manager Joe Girardi and Alex Rodriguez — a longtime teammate of Sabathia's — each passed along tearful farewells.
Sabathia will undoubtedly go down as one of the best pitchers in Yankees history. He helped the team win the World Series in 2009, and he finishes his career with more than 250 wins and 3,000-plus strikeouts.
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