| Advertisement |
NEW YORK -- Surprise was among the biggest emotions for the New York Yankees Monday afternoon after finding out CC Sabathia was checking himself into an alcohol rehabilitation facility. The other emotional component was the human element to what the left-hander means to the team personally.
Advertisement
Although the Yankees are trying to win playoff games, they also are focusing on the human side of the difficult situation Sabathia is undergoing regardless of the timing.
Sabathia's announcement that he is getting help for alcohol addiction is disappointing from a baseball perspective, but it is a dose of reality and the fact that real life is more significant than anything on the field.
Those feelings have existed ever since Sunday when general manager Brian Cashman received an unexpected phone call and manager Joe Girardi was surprised by the news in his office.
"I think CC has demonstrated a great deal courage to try and tackle this problem and time and place have no bearing," Cashman said at Monday's workout day before Tuesday's wild card game with the Houston Astros. "There's something here that needs to be taken care of and I applaud him for stepping up and doing everything necessary to solve this problem for himself as he moves forward."
Sabathia will miss the postseason, and the Yankees will miss someone who refused to call it a season after injuring his right knee in late-August. The news can be a jolt to anybody, especially a team preparing for postseason games, but inside the clubhouse where Sabathia is viewed as one of the team's leaders, motivation was the theme.
"We play for CC now," designated hitter Alex Rodriguez said. "CC has gone to the mat for us many, many times. I know me personally and lot of us in here, we wouldn't have a ring if it weren't for CC."
"You got to get better there before you can come out here and compete at this level," catcher Brian McCann said. "So we're all glad he's getting help and we're praying for him.
In other words, this is personal, with players trying to win games for themselves and a pitcher who would have not rejected coming out of the bullpen if needed Tuesday and who would have likely made a start in the ALDS.
"Everyone in that clubhouse loves CC like he's a brother," Girardi said. "We call ourselves a family and he's one of us and we know how important he is to us. The guys are really supportive of him and have the utmost respect for him."
Now the task will fall to right-handers Luis Severino, Michael Pineda and others if the Yankees win Tuesday, but from a baseball perspective, it is irrelevant compared to what Sabathia is dealing with and how he is tackling the issue before it spirals out of control.
"He's got a lot of courage to step up when he did because he knew that his family and his children were first," Girardi said. "When he came in yesterday, I was no longer a manager. I was someone that wanted to make sure that the proper course of action was taken."
"I wasn't expecting this type of press conference today," Cashman said. "But as I step back from the conversations we had yesterday and the courage it took for CC to come forward, especially at this time of year, with what's the next step that's taking place tomorrow night and hopefully beyond for us is that he is addressing an issue that needs to be addressed. Everything else is second to that."
Sabathia's presence will be missed in several ways and his absence will require some creativity should the season extend past Tuesday.
"You have to be a little bit more creative," Girardi said. "It's something I've gotten a little bit of practice over the last three years."
Sabathia is New York's most experienced postseason pitcher and pitched a complete game in its last playoff win Oct. 12, 2012. He also is widely respected among media and teammates and had his locker moved to former captain Derek Jeter's space inside the clubhouse.
He could have taken an unspecified leave of absence and the Yankees would not have commented publicly. Instead Sabathia elected to be honest and issue a statement on his own, which is hardly a surprise to anyone who knows him.
"Being an adult means being accountable," Sabathia said in the statement. "Being a baseball player means that others look up to you. I want my kids -- and others who may have become fans of mine over the years -- to know that I am not too big of a man to ask for help. I want to hold my head up high, have a full heart and be the type of person again that I can be proud of. And that's exactly what I am going to do."
Sabathia is the only pitcher remaining from the team's 2009 postseason run to a 27th World Championship. He also earned respect from his short time in Milwaukee in 2008 for constantly being willing to pitch on short rest.
The Yankees have not been in the World Series since 2009 and missed the postseason the previous two seasons when Sabathia was a combined 17-18 and missed most of last season recovering from right knee surgery.
This year Sabathia made it through most of the season, missing only two-plus weeks (Aug. 24-Sept. 9) with a sore right knee. He finished this year by going 6-10 with a 4.73 ERA but pitched well in the few starts before getting injured and in his outings after returning.
"What CC is dealing with is a life issue," Cashman said. "It's bigger than the game we have tomorrow night. So because of that, it's vitally important that that gets put into proper perspective and place."
