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Baseball Hall of Fame inductee CC Sabathia arrives on stage during the National Baseball Hall of … More
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
CC Sabathia’s induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum goes well beyond an elite left-handed starting pitcher being elected in his first year of eligibility. One of 15 pitchers who have won at least 250 ball games and struck out 3,000 batters, Sabathia is the personification of perseverance both on and off the field. Instead of a 15-minute induction speech that felt like a wandering trip down memory lane with occasional moments of levity, Sabathia was direct and spoke from the heart about the village of women who helped him navigate the struggles of life. Sabathia made it clear that he would be personally thanking a long list of people, but his induction speech was a tribute to a special group of women.
Sabathia paid homage to his mother, wife, aunts and grandmother. Amid family tragedies and the absence of his father for a period, Sabathia’s mother stressed the importance of character and always looking to move beyond the storm. She also didn’t mind wearing catcher’s equipment to work with her son as an adolescent or talk about pitch selection after a ball game when Sabathia was making a name for himself at the major league level. The joy in Sabathia’s eyes was overwhelming while talking about his wife, Amber, and their four children. A renewed outlook on life is allowing Sabathia to enjoy his children’s theater, dance and baseball endeavors.
A first-round selection (20th pick) by the Cleveland Indians in Major League Baseball’s 1998 draft, Sabathia received a $1.3 million signing bonus out of high school in Vallejo, California. According to Baseball-Reference’s calculation of the wins above replacement (WAR) statistic, Sabathia’s 62.3 WAR is the highest in his draft class. A raw talent by all accounts, Sabathia’s first minor league bullpen session in front of pitching coach Carl Willis could have been viewed as a disaster since he didn’t know how to demonstrate the grips on a two-seam fastball or four-seam fastball. Willis’ patience and attention to detail instilled confidence in Sabathia as he acquired a comprehensive education in pitching mechanics.
CC Sabathia And The Black Aces
Sabathia is a proud member of the Black Aces, an exclusive fraternity of 15 Black pitchers who have won at least 20 ball games in a single season. A 21-game winner with the New York Yankees in 2010, Sabathia is one of three Black Aces who are enshrined in the hallowed halls of Cooperstown alongside right-handed pitchers Bob Gibson and Ferguson Jenkins. As a 17-year-old minor league pitching prospect, Sabathia was introduced to Jim “Mudcat” Grant, a former right-handed pitcher and veteran of 14 major league seasons. Grant impressed upon Sabathia the importance of being a Black starting pitcher and getting connected with Buck O’Neil and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. A driving force in creating the Black Aces, Grant won 21 ball games in 1965 while pitching for the Minnesota Twins.
Baseball Hall of Fame inductees Billy Wagner, left, Ichiro Suzuki, second from left, and CC … More
Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
In honor of Sabathia and fellow Hall of Fame classmate Ichiro Suzuki, the Yankees curated a stadium museum exhibit celebrating their achievements while wearing the venerable pinstripes. As Sabathia selected the Yankees as the cap designation on his bronze plaque, the franchise chose three phrases that eloquently summarized his career in the Bronx. Sabathia was a clubhouse leader who served as a mentor and inspiration to teammates. A consistent winner, he was the epitome of the workhorse starting pitcher who put the ball club’s needs ahead of personal achievements. An advocate for empowering others, Sabathia’s PitCCh In Foundation enriches lives in underserved communities through athletic and educational endeavors such as clinics, renovating baseball fields, and distributing backpacks with school supplies for children.
Clayton Kershaw Pays Tribute To CC Sabathia
Left-handed pitcher Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers recently joined the prestigious 3,000 strikeout club. A reporter asked Kershaw which member of the club resonated the most with him. While he paid respect to contemporaries such as right-handed pitchers Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander, Kershaw was effusive in his praise of Sabathia. He specifically referenced what Sabathia did in September 2008 when he made three consecutive starts each on three days’ rest to catapult the Milwaukee Brewers into the postseason for the first time since Game Seven of the 1982 World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals. Kershaw was in awe of Sabathia’s selflessness and blatant disregard for his well-being even as free agency awaited him at season’s end.
Besides his infectious smile and gregarious personality, you can’t help but feel attracted to Sabathia given his brutal honesty regarding alcoholism, mental and physical health. Through personal experiences and the bravery to ask for help, Sabathia has learned how to manage the duality of beauty and tragedy in life one day at a time. An addiction to alcohol exacerbated decades of pain caused by anxiety, grief and insecurity. The pressures were compounded by Sabathia viewing his left arm as a golden ticket out of poverty and an opportunity to build a life of privilege for loved ones. It was as if his left arm was maintained in pristine condition while the rest of Sabathia’s body and soul suffered from years of neglect and addiction.
CC Sabathia Reinvented Himself As A Starting Pitcher
As choices have consequences, Sabathia was physically breaking down just as he was developing a healthy mindset for baseball and life. No one will ever forget his final appearance in Game Four of the 2019 American League Championship Series at Yankee Stadium where he sustained a left shoulder subluxation as the FS1 cameras caught a distraught Sabathia sitting on the dugout steps leading into the clubhouse. Besides ravaging his right knee to the point where he needs a replacement, Sabathia underwent angioplasty in December 2018 to remove a 90% blockage in an artery leading to his heart.
BRONX, NY – OCTOBER 17: CC Sabathia #52 of the New York Yankees walks off the field with Head … More
MLB Photos via Getty Images
Age and injuries forced Sabathia to confront limitations, but he made the necessary adjustments while earning universal respect from teammates and opponents. Instead of relying on four-seam fastballs pushing triple digits in velocity, Sabathia evolved into a cerebral pitcher who treated baseball more like a game of chess. He took pride in the art of inducing soft contact and moving pitches around the strike zone. While the days of complete games and throwing more than 100 pitches in a start were a distant memory, Sabathia took tremendous pride in five-inning performances where he kept hitters off balance with a new repertoire that featured a cutter, slider and two-seam fastball.
CC Sabathia competed with integrity and intensity while maintaining a deep loyalty to his teammates. In retirement, he is an invaluable asset to Major League Baseball as a special assistant to commissioner Rob Manfred. Besides sharing his vast insights and serving as a liaison between the league and current ball players, Sabathia wants to ensure that he won’t be the final member of the Black Aces. A healthy future for Major League Baseball begins with accessibility, affordability, diversity and Sabathia’s regular involvement when it comes to growing the game.
