Oct. 05--New York Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia announced Monday that he is checking himself into an alcohol rehabilitation center and will miss the team's playoff run.
"I love baseball and I love my teammates like brothers, and I am also fully aware that I am leaving at a time when we should all be coming together for one last push toward the World Series," Sabathia said in a statement released by the Yankees. "It hurts me deeply to do this now, but I owe it to myself and to my family to get myself right. I want to take control of my disease, and I want to be a better man, father and player."
The 2007 American League Cy Young winner was 6-10 with a 4.73 ERA this year but was 2-1 with a 2.17 ERA in five starts after returning from the disabled list and using a tighter brace on his surgically repaired right knee.
"As difficult as this decision is to share publicly, I don't want to run and hide," Sabathia said. "Being an adult means being accountable. Being a baseball player means that others look up to you. I want my kids -- and others who may have become fans of mine over the years -- to know that I am not too big of a man to ask for help. I want to hold my head up high, have a full heart and be the type of person again that I can be proud of. And that's exactly what I am going to do."
The Yankees pitching staff has struggled during the past month with a hamstring injury to Masahiro Tanaka and ineffective performances by Michael Pineda and Ivan Nova. The team hosts Houston in the AL wild-card game on Tuesday.
