Sabathia bringing the heat for Yankees in the postseason

Sabathia economical in his dominance for Yankees

ANAHEIM, Calif. — CC Sabathia taps his beefy right hand on the wooden door of his clubhouse locker and grins. Not that the power pitcher who’s on a playoff roll for the New York Yankees needs a lot of luck. Still, he’s not taking any chances.

“I don’t want to jinx anything or say anything I shouldn’t, but I’ve been feeling pretty good,” he said. “Hopefully, I’ll just keep it going, keep it rolling, and we win the whole thing.”

Sabathia’s dominance in these playoffs has helped put the Yankees on the brink of reaching their first World Series since 2003. They took a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven American League championship series into Thursday’s night game against the Los Angeles Angels.

“That’s why we got CC,” Johnny Damon said. “To be a workhorse during the season, of course, but to shut down teams in the postseason.”

Sabathia, who defeated the Angels in Games 1 and 4, would be in position to pitch Game 7 on four days’ rest if necessary. But unless the Angels regain their offensive punch, it’s more likely he’ll be well-rested for the World Series opener next Wednesday at Yankee Stadium.

That’s when Sabathia could go against former Cleveland teammate Cliff Lee, who is slated to pitch Game 1 for his new team, the Philadelphia Phillies. They defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 4-1 to clinch the NLCS on Wednesday night.

Sabathia was 2-3 with a 7.92 ERA in five playoff starts with Cleveland and Milwaukee before this season, but he’s been superb this October, going 3-0 with a 1.19 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 22.2 innings.

The Yankees’ left-hander yielded five hits and one run in eight innings while striking out five and walking two in Game 4 against the Angels, throwing 101 pitches on three days’ rest. He retired the last eight batters he faced.

“I never had any doubt about me being able to perform on this stage and to pitch well late in October, but it seems like people did,” Sabathia said. “But I feel great.”

Sabathia’s go-to pitch is his changeup, something the 6-foot-7, 290-pounder added to his repertoire when he reached the majors in 2001 with Cleveland and has perfected ever since.

“That was probably the biggest thing we had trouble adjusting to,” Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. “He threw it on off-counts and had great command of it.”

Sabathia cost the Yankees $161 million to acquire, but he’s been economical on the mound.

In Game 1 of the ALCS, he allowed four hits in eight innings, struck out seven and walked one, going to three-ball counts just twice.

Sabathia’s four shutout innings to open Game 4 marked the first time in eight career postseason starts that he hasn’t been scored upon in the first four innings.

“I don’t think you can say enough what he’s done so far in this series,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “One of the reasons he’s able to amass so many innings is he doesn’t throw a lot of pitches in seven or eight innings. He can give you that almost every time he goes out. Very seldom do you see him with 100 pitches in five innings.”

Sabathia said joining the Yankees this season was made easier by the addition A.J. Burnett, who came from Toronto. They’ve combined with veteran Andy Pettitte to form a lethal three-man rotation.

“I came here and from day one, Andy has been a big help,” Sabathia said. “I talk with A.J. about emotions, when you’re feeling strong how to keep that and how to keep your delivery tight.”

Burnett’s on-field pie-throwing after games has loosened up his teammates. When he’s not cutting up, he finds inspiration from following Sabathia in the rotation.

“It seems like every night he throws I give him a hug and say, ‘Man, you just inspired me to go tomorrow,’” Burnett said. “That’s who he is. He’s a horse. He throws eight innings every time out, and he sets the tone. We talked about it when we signed him, about being able to throw back-to-back, and it’s been an honor. It makes you go harder.”

Girardi presides over a clubhouse full of future Hall of Famers in his own low-key manner while marveling at Sabathia’s ability to keep his composure no matter how high the stakes get in the postseason.

“Sometimes people get a little overanxious or hyped up,” Girardi said. “I’ve not ever seen that during the season with CC. He’s the same guy every day. That’s one of the big pluses about him because it allows him to do his job every time.”