Sabathia not ready to retire, wants farewell tour
CC Sabathia isn't thinking about retiring any time soon, but when he does decide to hang them up for good, he wants to go out his way.
With his contract coming to an end at the conclusion of the season, and a vesting option for 2017 in the balance, the New York Yankees' left-hander is slated to turn 36 this week, but he feels he still belongs in the majors.
"I feel like I can do this for a couple more years," he told SI.com. "I'm gonna make them tear the jersey off my back. I wanna play as long as I can, as long as I'm healthy and able to do my job well I wanna go out and do it.
When asked about the eventual final year of his career, he referenced the experience of seeing former teammates Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera go out with farewell tours.
Sabathia said he wouldn't mind one of those for himself, either.
"That takes a special type of player," he said. "You're a special player if you can go out on your own terms and have everybody celebrate you going out ... I would love that."
In his 16th season in the majors, Sabathia is 5-7 with a 3.94 ERA and 74 strikeouts in 16 starts.