C. C. Sabathia
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
|
|---|---|
| Cleveland Indians — No. 52 | |
| Starting pitcher | |
| Born: July 21, 1980 Vallejo, California |
|
| Bats: Left | Throws: Left |
| Major League Baseball debut | |
| April 8, 2001 for the Cleveland Indians | |
| Selected MLB statistics (through May 19, 2008) |
|
| Win-Loss | 103-68 |
| Earned run average | 3.89 |
| Strikeouts | 1,199 |
| Teams | |
|
|
| Highlights and awards | |
|
|
Carsten Charles Sabathia (born July 21, 1980 in Vallejo, California) is an American Major League Baseball starting pitcher who plays for the Cleveland Indians.
Contents |
[edit] High school career
C.C. Sabathia attended Vallejo High School, where he lettered in baseball, basketball and football. In baseball, he compiled a mark of 6-0 with an 0.77 ERA (46.2 IP, 14 H, 82 K) during his senior season. Coming out of the draft he was the top high school prospect in Northern California according to Baseball America.
In football, he was an All-conference tight end. He received scholarship offers to play college football, including one from USC, and actually signed a letter of intent to attend the University of Hawaiʻi.[1]
[edit] Professional career
[edit] Pitching
Sabathia was drafted in the 1st round (20th overall) by the Indians in the 1998 MLB Amateur Draft. He signed for a $1.3 million bonus.
In 2000, he was selected for the 28-man 2000 United States Olympic Team roster. He 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.
In 2001 he was the youngest player in the Major Leagues (20), the first player born in the 1980s to make his major league debut (April 8), led the league in hits/9 innings pitched|IP (7.44), was third in the league in won-lost percentage (17-5, .773), fourth in strikeouts/9 innings pitched|IP (8.53), sixth in wins (17) and seventh in strikeouts (171). He finished second in the AL voting for rookie of the year, behind only Ichiro Suzuki.
In 2002, he was tenth in the AL in strikeouts (149).
In 2003, he had the tenth-best ERA in the AL (3.60). He was also named to the American League All-Star team
In 2004, he was again named to the American League All-Star team.
In 2005, he was fourth in the AL in strikeouts/9 IP (7.37), seventh in strikeouts (161) and eighth in wins (15).
In 2006, he led the major leagues in complete games (6). He also led the AL in shutouts (2), was third in ERA (3.22), sixth in strikeouts/9 IP (8.03) and eighth in strikeouts (172).
2007 was a banner year for Sabathia as he would blossom into an ace starting pitcher. He collected his 1000th career strikeout on May 21, on Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners. He was also named to the American League All-Star team for the third time. On September 28, he became the youngest pitcher (27 years, 69 days) to record 100 career wins since Greg Maddux in 1993. On October 23, Sabathia won the Players Choice Award for Outstanding AL Pitcher.[2] His pitching performance led the Cleveland Indians to their first American League Central Division Championship since 2001, his rookie season. For his performance, he was awarded the 2007 American League Cy Young Award joining Gaylord Perry as the only two Cleveland Indians pitchers to ever win the award.[3] Sabathia also won the coveted Warren Spahn Award given to the best left-handed pitcher in the Majors.[4]
Sabathia has a very good 94-98 mph fastball, an excellent 10-4 slider from 84-86 mph, and an 11-5 curve from 79-82 mph. He also has very good control, posting a very good[citation needed] 5.65 K/BB ratio.[5]
[edit] Batting
Although Sabathia is an American League pitcher who does not bat often, he has a career batting average of .297 with 1 home run and 6 RBI in 37 ABs. His 11 base hits as an AL pitcher in interleague play are currently the most in the league.
[edit] Miscellaneous
- As of September 2007, Sabathia had more career wins than any other active pitcher 27 years old or younger.
- Sabathia is one of the few pitchers mentioned to have a shot at 300 career victories by a pitcher in the modern era.
- Sabathia has a trademark way of wearing his hat, always wearing it slightly sideways and slanted.
- His California home was featured on an episode of MTV's Cribs.
- On March 14, 2007, Sabathia addressed ESPN, criticizing Major League Baseball for not doing extra to make sure there is an adequate African American presence in the game and that it was an on-going crisis.[6]
He was named the 2007 A.L. Cy Young Award Winner after a close contest with Red Sox ace Josh Beckett. He was the first Cleveland Indians pitcher in 35 years to win the award since Gaylord Perry won in 1972.
[edit] Personal
- MLB.com lists his weight at 290 pounds, making him the heaviest major league pitcher.
- He is 6' 7" tall.
- In 2000, he had his name tattooed, uniform-style, across his back in large letters.
[edit] References
- ^ C.C. Sabathia Biography, MLB.com.
- ^ MLB - awards - Yahoo! Sports
- ^ The Official Site of Major League Baseball: News: Sabathia takes home AL Cy Young
- ^ Oklahoma Sports Museum | Warren Spahn Award
- ^ The Official Site of Major League Baseball: Stats: Individual Player Stats
- ^ Associated Press (2007-3-14). Sabathia pitches for more African-Americans in game. ESPN.
[edit] External links
- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube
| Preceded by José Contreras |
American League Pitcher of the Month May 2006 |
Succeeded by Johan Santana |
| Preceded by Johan Santana |
American League Cy Young Award 2007 |
Succeeded by incumbent |
| Preceded by Johan Santana |
Players Choice AL Outstanding Pitcher 2007 |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
|
|||||
|
|||||
