Klapisch: Why CC Sabathia nearly retired this month

BOSTON – Every major leaguer wrestles his darker angels, the ones that sow doubt during slumps, make injuries feel like a career-ender. Frustration is part of the deal in The Show. But it’s not often that a veteran announces he’s ready to quit – as in, clean out the locker, call the wife and kids and hop on the next plane home – in the middle of a pennant race. That was CC Sabathia ten days ago, driven to the DL with a bad knee that he feared had given out for good.

“I pitched for a long time now. I’m not doing this for money or anything like that,” Sabathia said. “I’m doing this for fun and try to win a championship. If I can’t have fun and help this team win, there’s no need for me to be out there.”

Strong words from the most senior Yankee and clubhouse guardian. But arthritis is a merciless saboteur, targeting Sabathia with all its fury on August 8. Pitching against the Blue Jays, the big lefthander experienced a sharp pain in his right knee that made it impossible to complete his follow-through.

This wasn’t the first time Sabathia had struggled with his bone-on-bone condition, but the flare-ups in the last two years had been mostly controlled with cortisone and PRP injections as well as Synvisc, a gel-like substance that acts as artificial cartilage.

Sabathia and his doctors had tamped down the recurrences to at least revealing themselves early – a twinge here, a creak there, enough of a warning to warrant a booster shot. Sabathia knew he’d never be entirely pain free, but with the help of a brace he could at least deliver the ball smoothly and land his 300-pound body without worry about buckling his knee.

But not on that night in Toronto.

“Out of the blue” is how Sabathia described the emergency. He couldn’t find his release point against the Jays, missing his spots, more worried about the searing pain than location. And velocity? Not that Sabathia has had a plus-fastball in the last few years, but he felt like he was practically lobbing the ball to the plate.

Sabathia lasted only three innings, already having surrendered six runs. He limped off the mound straight to the trainers’ room. He told the medical staff he couldn’t go through another round of setbacks like the ones that nearly ruined him in 2015.

“It hurt and (thought) “it’s just not worth it.” “ Sabathia said. He repeated his vow to Joe Girardi, that one more serious injury would put an end to a stellar 17-year career that included 232 wins, a World Series ring and Cy Young Award.

 Girardi asked Sabathia to at least wait for the results of the next day’s MRI. The best-case scenario would be a clean scan, no ligament or tendon tears, just a renewal of chronic arthritis. The manager’s hunch was right. There was nothing wrong with Sabathia’s knee that hadn’t already presented itself – just a random surge of pain that defied explanation.

So the Yankees’ doctors went back to work, injecting Sabathia with cortisone and Synvisc and with a secondary prescription of rest. The lefthander felt better within days. He started playing catch last week and realized that as mysteriously as the pain arrived, it had receded just as quickly. And just like that, Sabathia was activated, told to forget the episode and be ready for the Red Sox tonight.

This was no small request, considering the Yankees are about to face Chris Sale, the American League preeminent lefthander. Luis Severino has stormed his way to the front of the Bombers’ rotation, but a healthy and steady Sabathia is capable of beating anyone in the AL, evidenced by an untouchable June when he allowed just one earned run in 18 innings and posted an 0.764 ERA.

The Yankees are preparing a final run at the Sox; with barely 40 games left on the schedules, every meeting between the two teams gives off an October vibe. “These are important games,” Girardi said, no longer bothering to parse his words. In many ways, Sabathia is the perfect asset to take on Sale: he’s the only starter with World Series experience and the least flappable.

The only question, of course, is how healthy Sabathia will be. A more immediate concern is how much rust he will have accumulated in the 11 days since his last start. Oh, one more factor: how will Sabathia deal with the knowledge that he’ll have to match zeroes with Sale, who chews up opposing lineups like a whale swallowing plankton?

To this Sabathia just smiled and said, “I’ve been pitching a long time. I’ve faced Pedro (Martinez), I’ve faced Hall of Famers.”

The response needed no other translation: Sabathia was once against broadcasting on that ultra-cool frequency. His moment of doubt had come and gone, the idea of retiring already purged. With a sprint to October beckoning, Sabathia is asking his knee for one final run without pain. If he and the Yankees aren’t hoping for a miracle, it’s awfully close.