Sabathia matures into true ace
Sabathia was determined to do his part to keep his team ahead.
By ANDY CALL
REPOSITORY SPORTS WRITER
CLEVELAND
This was a pitch C.C. Sabathia really needed.
The Indians led Baltimore on May 6 at Camden Yards, but the Orioles loaded the bases with one out in the sixth inning. Veteran first baseman Kevin Millar was at the plate with the count full.
Sabathia was determined to do his part to keep his team ahead. So, with all the strength Cleveland’s left-hander could muster from his 6-foot-7, 295-pound frame, Sabathia leaned back and fired ... a changeup.
The pitch fluttered in at 84 mph. Millar waved weakly at the ball. Sabathia walked calmly from the mound, a man at peace with having won a battle in perhaps a less manly way than simply hurtling another 95-mph heater.
“Earlier in my career, I would have thrown a fastball,” Sabathia said. “No doubt.”
This is how C.C. Sabathia has changed since his rookie year of 2001. This is how he has led his team to the playoffs and stated his case for the Cy Young Award.
He’s no longer a thrower. He’s a pitcher.
‘A TRUE NO. 1’
“C.C. is a true No. 1,” Indians Manager Eric Wedge said. “It’s a different atmosphere at the ballpark when he’s pitching.”
“Right now, if you had to pick one guy to win a game, he might be the guy,” Kansas City Manager Buddy Bell said.
Sabathia was a 20-year-old kid when he made the team out of spring training. Now he’s 27, a clubhouse leader and a player who has earned an opportunity to pitch in October because his maturity as a pitcher has mirrored his maturity as a man.
“The way C.C. handles himself impresses the heck out of you,” Wedge said.
They say the numbers don’t lie, but some of Sabathia’s numbers might seem too good to be true.
Sabathia (19-7) led the American League in innings pitched (241) and was among the leaders in strikeouts (209) and ERA (3.21). He walked only 37 batters and his strikeout-to-walks ratio (5.65 to 1) was the best of any left-hander in history outside of Randy Johnson in 2004 (6.59 to 1). He would have broken the 20-win barrier weeks ago had he enjoyed even modest run support.
He strung together 10 consecutive starts in which he allowed two runs or fewer, a feat duplicated by only five others in the last five years.
“When I think of C.C., I think of dependability,” Wedge said. “There are points in the season you need your No. 1 to step up. He’s done that, time and time again.”
STREAK STOPPER
Perhaps no time was a better time to step up than Sept. 8. The Indians lost the first two games of a critical series in Anaheim and references to the team’s 2005 collapse were being dropped. Sabathia took the mound and worked a complete-game, five-hit, 6-1 victory. Cleveland won the next game as well to earn a series split, and the Tribe was well on its way to its first division championship since 2001.
“C.C. has stepped it up in every way,” Indians closer Joe Borowski said. “If the bullpen needs a rest, he’ll go out there and throw eight or nine innings. If we’re coming off a two- or three-game losing streak, he’ll go out there and give us the best opportunity to get a win.”
Sabathia’s 209 strikeouts were the most by an Indians left-hander since Sam McDowell fanned 304 in 1970. The last pitcher to throw as many innings was Charles Nagy (227) in 1997.
He’s beaten Johan Santana three times this season and Justin Verlander twice. He’s 9-4 when pitching after a loss.
“He’s at the top of every category,” General Manager Mark Shapiro said. “I can’t imagine where our team would be without him.”
‘THE POSTER CHILD’
Those who have seen Sabathia interact with his family — wife Amber, son Carsten Charles III (‘Little C’), 4, and daughter Jaeden, 2 — can’t imagine he was once a young man who, perhaps, needed to grow up a little. Early in his career, Sabathia admits, he made bad choices in the company he kept off the field and the way he dealt with his emotions on it.
“The guys in this clubhouse will tell you I still act like a 17-year-old sometimes,” Sabathia said. “But on the field, being able to control my emotions has been the biggest thing.”
Sabathia no longer loses focus when teammates commit errors or perfectly good pitches end up flying over the fence. He gave up golf to avoid injuries. He committed to an offseason conditioning program. He listened to pitching coach Carl Willis and others who advised him to make offspeed pitches a more effective and frequent part of his arsenal.
“To learn to focus on things you can control is a hard, hard thing to accomplish,” Willis said. “C.C. has been the poster child.”
Sabathia has refined his changeup to the point it has become almost a signature pitch. The delivery appears nearly identical to that of his fastball, provoking guesswork in the mind of the hitter — a split-second of hesitation that can make the difference between a hit or a strikeout.
“C.C. has been in the league a long time, but he’s still only 27 years old,” Willis said. “To have that kind of confidence in all your pitches at that age is a rare thing.”
‘HE’S A MAN’
Less experienced Indian pitchers now look to Sabathia for guidance in his approach to pitching and to life. He has won friends in the clubhouse by never complaining publicly about the paltry run support often provided him.
“He’ll go out there for seven or eight games in a row and get only a run of support, and he’ll never complain,” Borowski said.
“Everybody’s looking for leadership,” Wedge said. “C.C. handles it now better than ever. That goes a long way. He’s a great teammate.”
Sabathia’s three All-Star Game appearances, his willingness to speak out on issues such as the lack of blacks in baseball and his climbing professional profile have gained notice in places outside of Cleveland.
“He’s very mature for his age,” said Kansas City’s Bell, a coach with the Indians from 2003-05. “He’s tough. He’s a great teammate. He’s a competitor. I think that got in his way in the past, but he’s matured a lot. He’s a man. I’m happy for him.”
What’s in the future for Sabathia? Certainly a huge contract, as he can declare free agency following the 2008 season. In the short term, his goals are more defined.
“I want to pitch in the postseason, and I want to win a championship,” Sabathia said. “I feel fine. I’m ready to pitch another month.”
Reach Repository sports writer Andy Call at (330) 580-8346 or e-mail:
andy.call@cantonrep.com
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