Former Guardians Star Elected To Cooperstown

Back in 2001, CC Sabathia, a tall kid with a big but wild fastball, made his MLB debut for Cleveland.

He won 17 games, lost just five, and delivered a 4.39 ERA in 180.1 innings.

He would have won AL Rookie of the Year if it wasn’t for Ichiro Suzuki’s historic debut campaign with the Seattle Mariners.

It was the middle of baseball’s steroids era, so the team gladly took that production and gave him a spot in their rotation for years, hoping he would mature as a pitcher and as a man.

He did just that, and proceeded to become the staff ace and a fan favorite in Cleveland, even winning the AL Cy Young Award in 2007.

Life and fate took him to the Milwaukee Brewers in 2008 and then to the New York Yankees from 2009 until his retirement in 2019.

Now, Sabathia is on his way to the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

C(ooperstown) C(alling).

Congratulations on being selected to the 2025 @baseballhall class, @CC_Sabathia. 👏#ForTheLand pic.twitter.com/n0a0X6eYfG

— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) January 21, 2025

Sabathia spent most of his prime with the Yankees, but he became a man in Cleveland, and he will tell you that himself.

He earned 106 of his 251 career wins with the franchise from 2001 to 2008.

He represented Cleveland at three All-Star Games and was part of some solid teams before the organization decided to trade him to the Brewers.

The southpaw has been a member of the Guardians Hall of Fame since August.

Now, he can claim he is part of MLB history as he joins the truly legendary players in Cooperstown.