ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — As he aged and lost velocity, CC Sabathia learned how to retire big league hitters with a variety of off-speed pitches to go with a fastball that had lost velocity.
Now in the sunset of the veteran left-hander’s terrific career, he is attempting to reinvent himself with the hope of helping the Yankees win the World Series.
Sabathia appeared in Tuesday night’s 2-1 loss to the Rays — which ended in the 12th inning on former Yankee Ji-Man Choi’s leadoff homer in front of 16,699 at Tropicana Field — out of the bullpen for only the second time in his long career.