Sabathia returned to Yankees to 'be on the best team' in AL East

For a brief period, it looked like longtime New York Yankees southpaw CC Sabathia was on the verge of signing with another team. He reportedly met with the American League East rival Toronto Blue Jays days before agreeing to a one-year deal to put on pinstripes again.

On his podcast, "R2C2" on the Players' Tribune, Sabathia said he couldn't imagine trying to pitch to the Yankees' barrage of bats.

"No. Absolutely not. And that’s why I wouldn’t have gone to the Blue Jays. If I’m going to be in the East, I’m going to be on the best team," Sabathia said. "I’m not coming to Yankee Stadium and getting my ass kicked."

Already a potent lineup in 2017, the Yankees added outfielder Giancarlo Stanton in a December trade with the Miami Marlins creating an even more daunting offensive core.

The Yankees were relatively tough on lefty pitching in 2017, posting a .757 OPS against southpaws. Stanton, however, demolished left-handers, posting a 1.213 OPS with 15 home runs in 156 plate appearances. Sabathia had good reason to be wary of switching allegiances.

Since joining the Yankees in 2009, Sabathia has a 120-73 record with 3.75 ERA and 1.26 WHIP over 255 starts.

As impressive as he's been over his career, age is at least partially catching up to the 37-year-old. Once a lock to pitch 200 innings, Sabathia hasn't reached that milestone since 2013. Still, the Yankees feature a solid rotation ahead of him with Luis Severino, Sonny Gray, and Masahiro Tanaka expected to do the bulk of the heavy lifting.