CC Sabathia: 250 wins, 3000+ Ks ... But, is he HOF material?

[Auggie]

NEW YORK –- CC Sabathia did not fully appreciate his first visit to Cooperstown, N.Y., representing the Indians in the annual Hall of Fame Game nearly two decades ago. A Minor Leaguer then, he had no spare time to set foot in the museum, settling for a glance from the bus as it rolled toward the highway.

As the 14th pitcher in history to record at least 250 victories and 3,000 strikeouts, Sabathia has all but guaranteed a second opportunity to tour those hallowed grounds. The left-hander succeeded in his fourth attempt at the milestone on Wednesday, hurling six strong innings to help the Yankees complete a series sweep of the Rays with a 12-1 victory at Yankee Stadium.

SNIP

“I think he’s a lock," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said of Sabathia. "This is it for him. I think in five years, they come calling.”

"His career is a Hall of Fame career," Sanchez added. "The 250 wins represent that, the 3,000 strikeouts that he has. A great career overall."

STORY: https://www.mlb.com/news/cc-sabathia-earns-career-win-250

In the postseason Sabathia is 10-7 with an ERA of 4.31. I've never recalled him being consistently overpowering. In 129 postseason innings, he's given up 137 hits but with 121 Ks and 63 BBs.

I'd want to bet against an automatic induction after five-years, though he will have the backing of East Coast media. We'll have to wait and see. Thoughts?

(link: https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/sabatc.01.shtml#all_pitching_postseason)

[GP6971]

1. I think he'll get in

but maybe not on the first ballot....probably 2nd or 3rd.

[redstateblues]

2. Of course all Yankee fans think so. He's no Tom Glavine who had over 300 wins

Which was the gold standard for starters

[Bleacher Creature]

3. I'm a biased Yankees fan, but I think he gets in.

I don't think he's a first ballot hall of famer, though, and I wouldn't be shocked if he wound up having to wait a few years.

[True Dough]

4. Sabathia being a HoF candidate makes for a helluva good debate

I've been persuaded by arguments on both sides.

My head says, Nah! But my heart says, hell yeah! He's this big, lumbering aging pitcher who has had to adjust from being a fireballer to mastering other pitches to continue winning (having a powerful Yankees offense behind you helps too). I sorta root for him, at least against teams that I dislike or don't care about.

[Auggie]

5. He has one more chance to redeem himself in postseason

If he dominates or eats up a lot of innings it will help his cause. IMO postseason stats account for a lot — it’s the stuff that helps makes legends.

[Iggo]

6. Absolutely.

And I hate the fucking Yankees.

[Yavin4]

7. Yes. The standard for Starting Pitchers will be lowered.

Going forward, it'll be a major rarity for a SP to get 200 wins given the innings limit in their first few seasons and heavy use of bullpens.

In fact, the typical SP is slowly becoming completely obsolete.

[bluedigger]

8. 2nd ballot.

He'll enter the Hall through the Good Enough door.

[Auggie]

9. +1