Indians Confidential

Looking at and talking to C.C. Sabathia right now is not an easy thing to do. He is as approachable as ever, and even last night, with assembled media in the Indians locker room at Progressive Field, C.C. answered every question given, good or bad, and never backed down from the issues that currently face the CY Young award winner.

He looks like someone that just lost their beloved pet, or was just told by their wife that she was cheating on them. He is in pain, knowing that four starts into a season that was to showcase his talents for a monster free agent deal that he is pitching as poorly as at any point in his Major League career. While money for next year does not appear to be on his mind, the one thing that is and that’s killing him is knowing that he’s letting his teammates down.

Questions about his health quickly get brushed off. Both C.C. and Eric Wedge deny any sort of physical problem, simply saying that the issue is in command of his pitches, not a physical ailment. Sabathia himself last night pointed to the fact that he’s not throwing the ball where catcher Victor Martinez is setting up, which is what is leading to at-bats like Edgar Renteria, who hit the grand slam that drove Sabathia from last night’s 13-2 loss.

For now forget about his next start, Sabathia just has to get back to basics and start with good bullpen sessions before his next start. He knows that with each poor start the questions of “what’s wrong” will get louder and louder, and there’s nothing he can do about it, until he goes out and shows the form Indians fans are use to. Until then, frustration for the worst stretch of his career will continue to mount, and his price tag for 2009 will continue to decrease with each pitch that floats over the middle of the plate.