Give Sabathia the No-Hitter, Cy Young & maybe MVP
C.C. Sabathia throws a pitch in what should have been a no-hitter Sunday against the Pirates. He also should be given the Cy Young Award and be considered for the MVP Award (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar).
C.C. Sabathia has been absolutely remarkable since being traded to the Milwaukee Brewers on July 7.
Not only has he become only the second midseason acquisition to go 9-0 (Doyle Alexander went 9-0 in 11 starts for the Detroit Tigers in 1987 after being traded from the Atlanta Braves for some prospect named John Smoltz), Sabathia has been a complete workhorse (and you know we love those). Sabathia already leads the National League with 6 complete games despite only 11 starts.
On Sunday afternoon, Sabathia tossed his third complete game shutout since joining the Brewers, striking out 11 Pirates batters, and allowing only one controversial hit to Andy LaRoche on a slow roller Sabathia mishandled, which can be seen about 12 seconds into this clip.
Personally, I would have ruled the play an error, and Sabathia would have indeed pitched a no-hitter.
Sabathia gets to the ball with LaRoche not even half way to first base, and speed is not a gene that runs in the LaRoche family. Both Andy and big brother Adam (who plays first base, also for the Pirates) have below average to average speed as is evidenced by their combined 5 stolen bases in 7 years of Major League Baseball. Sabathia is also an above average fielder as he showed an inning prior to LaRoche’s “hit” when he snagged a Nate McLouth line drive with his bare hand and then tossed to first for a double play. So C.C. gets the no-hitter in my mind.
Besides throwing the no-hitter that wasn’t yesterday, Sabathia has been the best pitcher in baseball even since before he was traded. He hasn’t lost since June 5 and has gone 12-0 in 16 starts since that loss.
Previously, many analysts were saying Sabathia could not win the NL Cy Young Award because of the season Brandon Webb has been producing (First 27 Starts: 19-4, 2.74 ERA, 1.07 WHIP). However, Webb has been blown up his last two outings allowing 14 runs (12 earned runs) while not making it out of the 5th inning in either start, opening the door for Sabathia, and Sabathia deserves to win his second consecutive Cy Young Award.
There are a couple of other Cy Young candidates, including San Francisco’s Tim Lincecum (who has the best numbers but plays on a bad team), Johan Santana (who has no bullpen support), Jake Peavy, and Ryan Dempster, but Sabathia has been nearly unhittable since joining the Brewers. Just ask Pittsburgh or teammate Bill Hall:
“He’s been dominant since he came over and, hopefully, he and rest of the team will take us to the promised land,” Hall said. (ESPN)
Hall is correct, and C.C.’s numbers back up his statement:
Sabathia with Cleveland - 18 games, 6-8 record with 3 complete games including 2 shutouts, 3.83 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 123 K in 122 1/3 IP
Sabathia with Milwaukee - 11 games, 9-0 record with 6 complete games including 3 shutouts, 1.43 ERA, 0.99 WHIP, 85 K in 88 IP
Not only should Sabathia be given the no-hitter and be rewarded with the Cy Young Award, but he should also be considered for the NL Most Valuable Player Award. This pitcher is rarely ever given to a pitcher and never to a pitcher acquired midseason, but Sabathia should receive consideration.
C.C. has been incredible on the mound, impressive in the batter’s box (7 for 30 with a home run and 4 RBI), and made an impact in the clubhouse.
The Brewers were third in the NL Central when Sabathia was traded for behind the Cubs and Cardinals. Today, the Brewers still trail the Cubs (who have the best record in baseball), but they lead the National League Wild Card while having the second best NL record (4th best in the majors).
Sabathia will also team with Ben Sheets to give the Brewers one of the toughest 1-2 punches and the toughest lefty-righty combination in the playoffs.
So give the man his no-hitter, give him the National League Cy Young Award, and give him some consideration for the MVP Award.
| 3.1 (2 people) |
September 1st, 2008 at 9:48 am
I don’t think it matters whether he gets a no-hitter or not - it will have no impact on the season or even his CyYoung chances…
Mikes last blog post..Around the Minors, I mean Majors
September 1st, 2008 at 9:55 am
@Mike You are right Mike, but if that play would have been originally called an error and he gets the no-hitter, do you not think that extra accolade would make a difference when the writers were considering the Cy Young candidates at the end of the season? If I’m close on two candidates, I’m taking the guy with the no-hitter and 5 total shutouts.
On a side note: Would you have ruled it an error or a hit?