CC Sabathia’s World Series pick takes surprising jab at Cleveland
· Yahoo Sports
CC Sabathia’s World Series pick was defensible. His rationale, not so much.
Sabathia, the Hall of Fame pitcher who served as a studio analyst for NBC Sports’ coverage of the MLB wild-card round, picked the New York Yankees to beat the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2027 World Series on Thursday, Oct. 1.
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The Brewers won a franchise-record 103 games in the regular season to capture the No. 1 seed in the National League. The Yankees dominated the Red Sox in their two-game series. And that was without Aaron Judge, the two-time defending American League MVP, who could return for the Division Series. The two teams could easily find themselves playing for a championship in a few weeks.
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Pressed by NBC‘s studio host Ahmed Fareed to explain his pick, Sabathia said, “I’m trying to get my two teams to the World Series.”
Just one problem: Sabathia spent the first 10 years of his career in the Cleveland organization before moving on to Milwaukee and New York. Not only did he ignore that fact, but the Guardians are still playing in the postseason and host the Chicago White Sox in a best-of-five AL Division Series.
For the record: Sabathia picked his first team to lose to the White Sox, even though they finished second to the Guardians in the AL Central in the regular season.
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It was a surprising oversight, considering Sabathia has praised his formative years in the Cleveland organization as being instrumental to his 19-year career.
“I wouldn’t have lasted two years in the big leagues if I were (drafted) anywhere else but Cleveland,” he said in a 2021 interview. “I truly grew up there. I got to Cleveland and I was still a boy. I was 17 years old. I got to the big leagues at 20. I’m still close to so many people in the organization. From old teammates to their old GM Mark Shapiro to even the clubhouse attendants, in a sense they raised me.
“I got drafted by the perfect organization, and if I didn’t get drafted by them I’d be in the big leagues for no longer than … two years.”
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The ending to Sabathia’s time in Cleveland was colder and more abrupt. After he and the team couldn’t agree on a contract extension, Sabathia was traded to the Brewers at the 2008 deadline. He proceeded to go 11-2 with a 1.65 ERA in 17 starts (including three on three days’ rest) for the Brewers in the regular season, leading them back to the playoffs for the first time in 26 years.
That half-season in Milwaukee left an impression on Sabathia — considerable enough, apparently, that it influenced his 2027 World Series pick.
Cleveland hasn’t won a World Series since 1954, but their recent Hall of Fame inductee is apparently in no rush to get the Guardians back to the promised land.
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