Wobbly CC Sabathia Was Drinking In Clubhouse On Friday

CC Sabathia announced yesterday that he would go to rehab for an alcohol problem, and today, a report from ESPN’s Wallace Matthews highlights one possible reason for the timing: Sabathia hitting the liquor in the clubhouse after Friday’s rainout in Baltimore.

The ESPN report is careful with its wording, and doesn’t come out and say Sabathia was drunk a day after his start against the Red Sox. He was “walking unsteadily” while holding a cup with “brown liquid”:

After the Yankees’ game with the Baltimore Orioles was rained out on Friday afternoon, Sabathia was seen by reporters walking unsteadily as he left the Yankees’ clubhouse. The normally affable pitcher also failed to respond to the greetings of reporters who have known him for a long time.

A short time later, an onlooker noticed Sabathia offering a paper cup containing a brown liquid to a teammate who was finishing up a workout, urging the teammate to “take a sip.” The teammate refused, saying he still had some running to do. Sabathia was then ushered out of the building and into a waiting cab by a third teammate.

The Post adds a lightly sourced report, vague on specifics, that claims Sabathia spent the weekend on a “bender” that mostly included drinking at his hotel.

Sabathia won’t be part of the Yankees’ postseason run; the team plays the Astros tonight.