Carsten Charles Sabathia, Jr., was born on July 21, 1980, in Vallejo, California, near San Francisco. Forty-five years and six days later, he was inducted in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y.
The six-foot-six left-handed pitcher’s career spanned 19 seasons and he racked up a career record of 251 wins and 161 losses with a pretty good earned run average of 3.74. C.C. won 19 games three times and once won 21 in a season.
Sabathia began his career with the Cleveland Indians in 2001 and was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers during the 2008 season. After posting a 106-71, 3.83 ERA during his time in Cleveland, Mr. and Mrs. Sabathia spent $12,870 for advertising space in the July 30, 2008. sports section of the Cleveland Plain Dealer: “Thanks for 10 great years you’ve touched our lives with your kindness, love and generosity. We are forever grateful. It’s been a privilege and an honor.”
After winning six and losing eight for Cleveland in the 2008 season, C.C. put on a Milwaukee Brewers uniform and led his new teammates to the top going 11-2 with a low ERA of 1.65. After the season the free agent parlayed those numbers into a seven-year contract for $161 million with the New York Yankees.
While wearing the uniform of the New York Yankees over 11 years, Sabathia recorded 134 victories, 88 losses and an earned run average of 3.61. Sabathia didn’t really want to spend the last years of his career with the Yankees and hoped for a big offer from his home state Los Angeles Dodgers. Yankees manager at the time Joe Girardi and General Manager Brian Cashman flew to the Sabathia California home and gave a winning pitch.
The Yankees delegation scored more with C. C.’s wife Amber who was convinced New York and the Yankees would be the right move for the family. Sabathia wished his father, who died when C. C. was a 23-year-old pitcher with the Indians, was around to advise him. The new Hall of Famer credits great advice from his great wife that sealed the deal.
Amber Sabathia told her husband,” You have to go where they really want you. And you always talk about how much you want to win and be on a winner. The Yankees are the team that tries to win every single year. That’s the team for you.”
A youngster from Brooklyn from a very yeshivishe family was elated that Sabathia was coming to New York. He called C. C. to tell him how happy he was. The two met when C. C. was with Cleveland and would often visit the Cleveland Clinic where Dovid (not his real name) was recovering (after his doctors told the family the Clinic specializes in the treatment Dovid needed). C.C. visited Dovid often and even gave him his cell phone number.
Dovid recovered enough to go back home and the two communicated through his Yankees years. Sabathia arranged for Dovid to come to games and a tour of the players’ area. With a baseball from the future Hall of Famer, Dovid was able to get many coveted signatures and lots of memorabilia. Dovid and his family know that C.C. Sabathia is the biggest mensch enshrined in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.
