CC Sabathia's Yankees Career Over as Ben Heller added to ALCS roster

After suffering a partially dislocated shoulder in a relief appearance during New York’s loss in Game 4 of the ALCS, CC Sabathia has been removed the Yankees ALCS roster and replaced with righty reliever Ben Heller.

The move makes Sabathia ineligible to play in the World Series should the Yankees rally back from the 3-1 series hold to make it that far, effectively ending his career pitching in pinstripes.

The 39-year-old has already announced he will be retiring after the season.

A six-time All-Star, Sabathia led the league in wins three times and won the American League Cy Young award in 2007.

Realizing after the game that Sabathia’s career was probably over, Joe Girardi, who managed him from 2009–2017, got emotional while talking about the longtime ace on MLB Network’s postgame show.

“CC, you’re a Hall of Fame pitcher that was as tough as any man I was ever around,” Girardi said. “What you went through on a daily basis to just be able to get on the mound … You were a great husband. You were a great father. You probably were the greatest teammate I have ever been around because of your ability to pull all 25 and sometimes all 50 people together in a clubhouse. You were the guy that I always wanted on the mound … [chokes up] … when we needed a win. And it was a privilege for me to manage you for nine years. I love you, man.”

“I love you, man.” – An emotional Joe Girardi to his ace @CC_Sabathia. #MLBTonight pic.twitter.com/d1seKIjuDQ

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) October 18, 2019

Though he’s biased about the pitcher with whom he won the 2009 World Series, Girardi is probably correct about Sabathia being a Hall of Fame pitcher.

With 251 wins under his belt, Sabathia is tied for 47th on MLB’s all-time wins list with Hall of Famer Bob Gibson. Of the 48 players with 250 wins or more, only 9 have not been inducted into the Hall of Fame. One of them is Roger Clemens (354 wins).

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