51 Facts About CC Sabathia

1.

CC Sabathia made his major league debut with the Indians in 2001 and placed second in the 2001 AL Rookie of the Year voting behind 2001 AL MVP Ichiro Suzuki.

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2.

CC Sabathia played the first seven and a half seasons of his career with the Indians, with whom he won the 2007 Cy Young Award.

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3.

CC Sabathia led the Indians to the 2007 AL Central Division title and their first postseason berth since his rookie year.

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4.

CC Sabathia was voted the 2009 American League Championship Series Most Valuable Player.

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5.

CC Sabathia was born in Vallejo, California and attended Vallejo High School, where he excelled in baseball, basketball, and football.

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6.

CC Sabathia was the top high school prospect in Northern California according to Baseball America.

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7.

CC Sabathia graduated from Vallejo High School in 1998 and went directly from high school to minor league baseball.

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8.

In 2000, CC Sabathia was selected for the 28-man United States Olympic Team roster.

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9.

CC Sabathia appeared in one pre-Olympic tournament game in Sydney, Australia, but was not on the official 24-man, Gold Medal-winning roster because he was called up by the Cleveland Indians.

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10.

CC Sabathia was named the Indians' 2000 Minor League Player of the Year .

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11.

In 2001, at age 20, CC Sabathia began his rookie season as the youngest player in the Major Leagues.

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12.

CC Sabathia was named to the American League All-Star team for the first time.

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13.

CC Sabathia threw the fastest fastball in the AL in 2005, averaging 94.

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14.

CC Sabathia was named to the American League All-Star team for the third time.

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15.

CC Sabathia finished his tenure with the Indians with 106 wins against 71 losses in 237 starts, a 3.

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16.

CC Sabathia started Game Two of the NLDS against the Philadelphia Phillies; it was his fourth consecutive start in which he pitched on three days' rest.

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17.

CC Sabathia was awarded the Warren Spahn Award for the second year in a row.

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18.

CC Sabathia earned his first career postseason victory with the Yankees in the first game of the 2009 ALDS against the Minnesota Twins.

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19.

CC Sabathia finished fourth in the AL Cy Young Award voting behind Zack Greinke, Hernandez, and Justin Verlander and 21st in the MVP voting .

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20.

CC Sabathia received the Warren Spahn Award for the third year in a row, becoming the first Yankees pitcher to win it since Andy Pettitte in 2003.

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21.

CC Sabathia ended the season with 21 wins, the most in the major leagues, against just 7 losses.

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22.

CC Sabathia began therapy immediately after the surgery and began his regular routine in preparation for spring training after three to six weeks.

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23.

CC Sabathia lost weight in an effort to prevent future problems with his knee.

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24.

In 2011, CC Sabathia was the opening day starter for the Yankees for the third year in a row.

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25.

CC Sabathia was named to his fifth career All-Star game, replacing James Shields on the roster; however, he elected to pitch the Sunday before the All-Star game and his spot on the active roster was given to Alexi Ogando.

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26.

CC Sabathia became the first Yankee pitcher to have 13 wins by the All-Star break since Andy Pettitte in 1996, and his 2.

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27.

CC Sabathia ended up striking out 14 batters through seven innings, and pitching a combined one-hitter.

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28.

CC Sabathia became the first Yankee pitcher to strike out more than 200 batters in a single season since Randy Johnson in 2005, as well as the first Yankee pitcher to finish in the top two in the American League in strikeouts since Johnson did so that same year.

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29.

CC Sabathia finished fourth in the AL Cy Young voting, placing behind Verlander, Jered Weaver, and Shields, as well as 14th in the MVP ballot.

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30.

CC Sabathia finished fourth in the Cy Young voting following the 2011 season.

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31.

CC Sabathia began the 2012 season poorly, allowing a grand slam by Carlos Pena in his first inning of work on opening day against the Tampa Bay Rays.

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32.

CC Sabathia finished the year strongly after returning from injury, post a 2.

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33.

CC Sabathia lost 40 pounds in 2013 and arrived at spring training in 2014 weighing 275 pounds .

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34.

CC Sabathia admitted to crash dieting after a cousin of his died of heart disease in December 2012.

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35.

In 2015, CC Sabathia reported to spring training weighing 305 pounds, as he believed his decreased weight had contributed to his poor and injury-shortened 2014 season.

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36.

CC Sabathia experienced a career renaissance in 2017, transitioning successfully from being a pitcher who relied on power and velocity to one who relied on command and pinpoint control.

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37.

CC Sabathia started Game Three of the ALCS against the Houston Astros, earning the win after throwing six shutout innings and allowing only three hits.

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38.

CC Sabathia re-signed with the Yankees on a one-year contract for $10 million for the 2018 season.

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39.

CC Sabathia received a five-game suspension for throwing at Sucre, to be served in 2019.

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40.

CC Sabathia started Game Four of the ALDS and took the loss, giving up three runs in three innings.

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41.

CC Sabathia was cleared to begin working out in January 2019 following a December 2018 procedure to insert a stent into his heart.

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42.

CC Sabathia began the 2019 season on the 10-day injured list as he continued to recover from heart surgery.

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43.

CC Sabathia received a cortisone shot to treat the pain, and was informed that he would need knee replacement surgery after his baseball career ended.

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44.

CC Sabathia pitched six innings, struck out seven, and surrendered one run.

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45.

CC Sabathia accepted an invitation to appear in the 2019 MLB All Star Game in Cleveland to throw the ceremonial first pitch; during the game, he made a mound visit to Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman.

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46.

CC Sabathia was not named to the Yankees' 25-man roster for the 2019 American League Division Series against the Minnesota Twins.

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47.

CC Sabathia pitched in the eighth inning of Game 4 of the American League Championship Series.

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48.

CC Sabathia threw 20 pitches, retired two batters with a line-out, hit batsman, and flyout, but could not finish the inning due to discomfort.

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49.

CC Sabathia was one of the most dominant pitchers in the vicennial period of 2000 to 2020; posting more wins, games started, innings pitched, and strikeouts than any other major league pitcher during that time period.

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50.

In July 2017, CC Sabathia started the R2C2 podcast with co-host Ryan Ruocco as part of The Players' Tribune.

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51.

In December 2018, after developing shortness of breath and other symptoms, CC Sabathia underwent a cardiac catheterization and was found to have a blockage of a coronary artery.

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