SABATHIA HAS HEART SURGERY
CC gets stent, expected to make full recovery
Yankees pitcher CC Sabathia recently experienced a health scare that resulted in his undergoing a heart procedure to clear a clogged coronary artery, the Daily News confirmed from a spokesman from Roc Nation Sports, the agency that represents Sabathia.
The veteran Yankee lefty is expected to make a full recovery.
Sabathia, 38, underwent the procedure on Dec. 11 at New York Presbyterian Hospital after experiencing chest pains. Doctors inserted a stent to clear the blockage in the artery, a common procedure known as an angioplasty.
According to the Roc Nation spokesman, it was an ambulatory procedure, as Sabathia was in and out in just one day.
“He's home, he's fine and he should be good to go for spring training,” the spokesman said.
“CC was experiencing some chest pain, which turned out to be a blockage in one artery to his heart,” Sabathia's agent, Kyle Thousand said in a statement to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal, who first broke the news. “A procedure was done to insert a stent to clear the blockage on Dec. 11. CC is doing great and will be reporting to spring training on time to get ready to play for his upcoming final season in 2019.”
Sabathia signed a one-year, $8 million contract in November to return for his 11th season in pinstripes. He was expected to be the number five starter in the Yankees revamped pitching rotation, which added James Paxton via trade and J.A. Happ, who signed a free agent contract this week, to go along with Luis Severino and Masahiro Tanaka.
Sabathi a was 9-7 with a 3.65 ERA in 29 starts last year, a dependable veteran arm the Yankees were able to rely on during the regular season.
Yankee GM Brian Cashman released a statement soon after the news of the procedure broke.
“We are thankful that CC was smart enough to convey his symptoms to our medical staff, and in turn they immediately engaged New York-Presbyterian Hospital, who quickly determined the root cause of what ailed him. We are also encouraged that the procedure CC underwent was performed as planned. He is such a dynamic person beyond his excellence on the field, and we will proceed with his health at the forefront of our priorities. We will continue to follow the guidance and expertise of the doctors — who have conveyed that CC will report as scheduled to Tampa in February to prepare for the 2019 season,” Cashman said in the statement.
The Yankees' official Twitter account sent out a photo of a laughing Sabathia with the caption: “We still think you have the best heart, @CC_Sabathia.”