CLEVELAND, Ohio — Born in Vallejo, California but “grew up” in Cleveland, now CC Sabathia is a Hall of Famer after the Baseball Writers’ Association of America votes were announced Tuesday.

On Wednesday’s podcast, Paul Hoynes and Joe Noga celebrate CC’s career and what it means for the Guardians to have just the third player ever drafted and developed by the organization reach the Hall.

Listen and read along with an AI-generated transcript of the podcast below.

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Read the automated transcript of today’s podcast below. Because it’s a computer-generated transcript, it may contain errors and misspellings.

Joe Noga 0:04Welcome back to the Cleveland Baseball Talk podcast.I’m Joe noga. Joined by Paul Hoynes.Hoynes. We have a Hall of Famer. CC Sabathia elected on his first chance on the ballot.The guardians Cleveland. This is a guy who was born in Vallejo, CA.But anybody you talk to says he grew up in in Cleveland.He he says that he grew up in Cleveland before moving on to the Brewers and ultimately to the Yankees.Probably a little disappointing that he says he wants to go in wearing a Yankees cap into the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.But I don’t care. We’re claiming him.He sees our guy.You know, Cleveland drafted him.Cleveland developed him and put him on the Hall of Fame path.

Just what are your reactions? You covered basically his whole career here in Cleveland to see Cece Sabathia become a first ballot Hall of Famer.

Paul Hoynes 1:01Yeah, really happy for CC. As you said, Joe saw him all the way from, you know, his first game till his last in in Cleveland.Just saw mature as a as a player, as a person.And he certainly, as people have said, you know, he might be one of the last of a of a breed, so to speak, a guy that you know.Pitches 200 innings a year that that wins 200.You know what? He’s finished his career with 251 wins. You know, there might be. They’re not.There might not be guys anymore.

Guys like that, I mean I guess you know, you know there’s some, you know, Max Scherzer and you know.

Joe Noga 1:47

Gerrit Cole.

Paul Hoynes 1:47Who am I?

Yeah, Garrett Cole and the guy from Detroit, I mean.

Joe Noga 1:52

Just a Verlander, yeah.

Paul Hoynes 1:53Yeah. Justin Verlander.You know those those kind of guys, but you know after those guys are gone, I mean.Who’s gonna win 250 games in the big leagues anymore?What team is gonna let their starting pitchers hang around that long to get that many decisions?So you know Cece, you know, answer the bill. He took the ball.And just, you know, really from, you know, the 19 or 20 year old kid when he made his big league debut, he just kept getting better and better and better.He was always willing to learn.He was always had his ears open.And you know, he and he never changed Joe.

He’s a lot like Tomi in that regard, that those guys were the same guys that the first day they walked into the locker room to the last.

Joe Noga 2:42Yeah. And, you know, you make the point.He I think he was sort of built for this, you know, 6 foot six, 300 lbs. When he was, you know, mostly when he was pitching.This is a big guy you wrote in your your take about him getting into the Hall of Fame.About his size and his stature and his presence, and I think.That that translated even into the later part of his career when he was with the Yankees and and he was revered as a teammate and a guy.You know, every one of those, those guys in the clubhouse would stick up for and and he stuck up for them, you know, obviously getting into it with the Red Sox and the and the rays and, you know, back and forth battles.In that AL East.But this is a guy who, beyond just what he’s done on the playing field, obviously you know, he’s one of what now three, you know, African American pitchers elected to.The Hall of Fame.You know, outside of the ***** leagues, guys who are are are in there, this is, you know, pretty impressive what he’s done.He’s a a member of the Black Ace as you win 20 games in the the big leagues, you’re you’re in that sort of secret society club with with CC Saban, the now that’s there’s. There’s more to more than just baseball to him. His work with the.The boys and girls clubs obviously coming from you know, where he came from in his youth.

And that playing a big role in his in his life. So all around, I think he checks all the boxes for being a a Hall of Famer, not just what he’s accomplished on the field, but you know, certainly just who he is as a person.

Paul Hoynes 4:29Yeah, Joe. And and you when you talked about his his size, his 6766300 pounds, you know, you just didn’t see pictures like that big. I mean still don’t you know with his his body, you know, he was almost like an offensive lineman a.Tight end and they really the the guard. The Indians really had to find a way to treat him a little bit differently.He wasn’t going to run as as much as as other starting pitchers just because he was so big.You know, and I think you put too much strain on the body.They found ways to keep him in shape to develop him, but the size you just you just never got over it and and you know, he pitched with it.I mean, guys, certain guys you know, have certain body types. And I think when Cece tried to lose weight, he wasn’t as good a pitcher as as he was right around two 9300 lbs.I mean, that was that was his playing weight and.

He was physically that’s that was. That’s where his peak was.

Joe Noga 5:33Yeah. And he he looks great.Now you know he’s in great shape in his retirement, looking at the videos of him answering the call from Cooperstown.Just just significant what he meant to the, you know, the Cleveland organization before he he was traded in 2008 after winning the Cy Young the year before.You know what he meant to this, this club in terms of this was a guy that, you know, he’s only the third player that Cleveland drafted and developed.Who’s made it to the Hall of Fame joins Dennis Eckersley, Jim Thomey and now CC Sabathia as Cleveland draft picks who they developed and who eventually made it to the Hall of Fame.This is a guy who’s he’s still all over the place in terms of.The the Cleveland record books as well. Nineteen seasons.I think he spent eight or nine.Seven or eight in Cleveland.Over 1600 strikeouts for for, for Cleveland.

And you know what? The finished second in the Rookie of the Year balloting to a guy who’s going to be walking into Cooperstown side by side with him in in Ichiro Suzuki.

Paul Hoynes 6:50Yeah, that’s really ironic, isn’t it?You know, and I mean Suzuki, you know, was 27 when he came to the big leagues, broke in with Seattle in 2001.CC was 20, you know, as you know when you’re just looking at it as pure rookies, you know, Ichiro had, you know, been playing in Japan for several years and won several Japanese batting titles.He was not a rookie.This was his as about his season.The player as you could get and CC was a raw rookie man.There was.There was no doubt he was a rookie, but now that so they finish one, two and a rookie of the year that year and now they finish 1-2 in the in the Hall of Fame voting.So that’s really cool.That’s a that’s a good. You know, that’s I don’t know that I don’t.What do you call that serendipity?

I’m not sure.

Joe Noga 7:41Serendipity. That’s exactly what you call it when you’re ready to come up with that one.I I would.I would say.Yeah, everybody’s really happy about Ichiro getting in, you know, great guy, great for baseball, great for the game.First, Japanese player elected to the Hall of Fame.

Obviously, everybody except one person who didn’t vote for him or he didn’t appear. Ichiro didn’t appear on his ballot.

Paul Hoynes 8:03

Yeah.

Joe Noga 8:06This is the same thing that sort of happened in, in that Rook of the year voting.In what, 2001? When Ichiro missed being a unanimous rookie of the year by one vote and we’re very familiar with the individual who cast that one vote, it was for CC Sabathia.It was a Cleveland writer who voted that way.And yeah, you you’ve got your argument.Hey, the guy was going to win either way, you know, maybe.The the person who left Ichiro off his ballot.Did so in in order to to use that vote for somebody else. You only get 10 if you’re a BB WA voter. Maybe.Hey, Ichiro, I know he’s going to make it.I know he’s going to, you know, be in with more than 75% of the vote. I’m going to use the vote that would have gone to him on somebody else to try to keep them on the ballot.

Maybe that’s the philosophy used there, but pretty hard to justify not casting a vote for each euro in this situation.

Paul Hoynes 9:10Yeah, for sure, Joe. And the Hall of Fame voters.Will their their their ballots will become public on February 4th?You know the bbwaaawhile in one of the winter meetings, the members voted almost unanimously to have every ballot made public.But the Hall of Fame which runs, you know runs, you know, which owns the hall.I mean the the Hall of Fame.You know, the people that run the Hall of Fame, you know, rejected that, that motion and just said you had left it up as as optional for whoever. Whatever writers you want there ballots to be public, they will be made public.And I think it maybe last year was 78% of the ballots were public, but I would imagine the the person who did not vote for Ichiro was will not make his ballot public.Or his or her ballot public. But perhaps they will, and I’d love to hear the explanation.I hope.I hope they didn’t do it out of spite. Like you know, I hope they did it because like you said, perhaps they were, you know, they wanted to protect another player, to try to help him stay on the ballot for another year.But it’s hard to argue the stats about each row not being a Hall of Famer not being a first ballot Hall of Famer. I mean, you know, to to reason.

Otherwise it’s crazy.

Joe Noga 10:40Yeah, you know, 10 Gold gloves, 3 silver sluggers.You know the all time record for single season hits.300 career batting average. You know All Stars.There’s there’s no reason to keep.There’s no legitimate reason to keep him off your ballot, but.Again, you hope that the person that didn’t cast that vote.Didn’t do so to make himself part of the story.Or him or herself. Part of the story.That’s the only thing that I I I hope is the case or it is not the case in this situation. And like you said, we’ll find out in a couple weeks.Don’t want to skip over Billy Wagner?Obviously, a guy who deserves recognition as well pitched for the Astros, Phillies, Mets, Red Sox and Braves 422 saves.The fewest innings I think of any, any pitcher elected to the Hall of Fame.But again, one of the all time greats in terms of closing out games and and his effectiveness coming out of the bullpen, he was he was a Hall of Famer by the numbers and it took him to the very last second.

They made him wait the longest last year, eligible on the ballot, and he was the last guy whose name was called.

Paul Hoynes 12:04Yeah, Joe.What 12 seasons of 20 or more saves?That includes nine seasons with 30 or more saves.Did not pitch that well in the postseason, but a career 2.31 ERA. And as you said, 422 saves the eighth most in the big leagues.So you know Wagner, very deserving of the award. Had to wait a long time.You know, right.So I’m glad he got in it. You know, you could tell.You can see when they interviewed him, just the pressure being lifted off him and just that he finally made it.

I think he’d been through the last couple years or he’d been just missed and you know that that can weigh on you.

Joe Noga 12:46Yeah, he missed by 5 votes last year, and so it wasn’t a a sure thing that he was going to make it this year, but it was pretty close, so that that waiting had to be just tremendously difficult. The the number that jumps off the page in terms.Of you know, Billy Wagner for me.A 0.998 whip.Allowed fewer than one baserunner per inning for his career.That’s that’s impressive.You know, you’re if your whip is under one for your career, you’re doing something right. If you’re a reliever, so.Billy Wagner, certainly a deserving Hall of Famer.Guys that just missed this year 277 out of the what, 394 votes?I think their ballots there were Carlos Beltran at 70.3%. You need 75 to get in.So Beltran trending in the in the right direction, a lot of people, you know, say that, you know, maybe it was.The science stealing scandal that he was a part of in Houston, that that might be delaying him. But he’s a guy who could be hearing his name called next year.And the other guy?That’s close.Is Andrew Jones from Atlanta, a guy whose career defensively was tremendous? He probably.Played two or three seasons too long and had a big drop off with his numbers at the end of his career, but he’s at 66.2% of the vote and could be, you know, in the in the running next year to to get into Cooper.Hoynes. Let’s let’s take a look at your ballot.You of course, are the the voting representative here for cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer.You’ve been doing it.For a long time now.

I’m I’m curious to hear who the 10 guys or not ten guys who? Who? The guys on your ballot were heading into this year.

Paul Hoynes 14:49Joe, I voted for 10 guys.I usually try to vote for 10 guys, and here’s here’s the ballot.Here’s let’s get it going here.Carlos Beltran, Mark Burley, Tori Hunter, Andrew Jones, Dustin Fedroya, Francisco Rodriguez.CC.

Sabathia, Ichiro, Omar Vasquez and Billy Wagner.

Joe Noga 15:17

All right.

Paul Hoynes 15:17

That’s that’s my 10.

Joe Noga 15:20Well, you know, in hearing that the the first thing that jumps out in my mind.You’re very AL Central, you know, heavy in terms of the guys that you you voted for, you know, Beltran obviously came up in the the AL Central.Burly hunter, these are guys.Who? Who you’ve seen a lot.So you know, just the the ability to to watch those guys play the most number of games probably.

Out of the guys on the ballot, you know, you got to know them and you got to know about them a little bit more.

Paul Hoynes 15:52Yeah, definitely, Joe.I didn’t really think about that, but you’re right.You know, like Burley, you know, you know, I kind of.I was kind of Luke warm on Burley when he first appeared on the ballot, but then you look at his, you look at his career, 14 seasons of 200 innings or more, five time All Star, four time Gold Glove winner through a perfect game and a no.Hitter.And every time he pitched against Cleveland, the game was over in about two hours and.Hours in one minute it was like it was a race to the finish.

So you had to like that.

Joe Noga 16:27Well, Burley finished with 45 total votes 11.4% on the ballot, so he’ll stay on and he’ll come back next year on the ballot, as Will Francisco Rodriguez, as Will Tori Hunter, who made it with 20 votes. Only 5.1% of the vote.But you need 5 to stay on.So he stays on the ballot.Dustin Pedroia, 11.9% of the vote.He got 47 votes.He was a guy that you voted for.

But obviously, you know he’s won championships, he’s been an MVP, but his career maybe cut a little short because of injury.

Paul Hoynes 17:06Yeah, love to watch Pedroia play.Hated to see what he did to the to the Indians, but just a guy that won the AL Rookie of the Year. The next year he was a ALMVP. His four time All Star of 100 runs, four times. He and we won two.World Series championships.I mean, he was the spark plug that made the Red Sox go to Windows 2 World Series titles.You hear Terry Francona talk about them.You know he can’t say enough good things.

I thought I don’t make it, but I thought he deserved my vote just to make sure to help him stay on the ballot and have people get a longer look at him.

Joe Noga 17:49Yeah, it’s, you know something that we’re here in Cleveland, a little sensitive to about, you know, guy like Kenny Lofton who didn’t get that consideration, didn’t get guys thinking enough about him to to keep him on the ballot in his first year, and he fell off other guys.That fell off this year.Ian Kinsler, Russell Martin, Brian McCann, Troy Tulowitzky, Curtis Granderson, Adam Jones, Carlos Gonzalez, Hanley Ramirez, Fernando Rodney and Ben Zobrist all finished with less than.5% of the vote. They will not be back on the ballot next year for.Hanley Ramirez, Fernando Rodney and Ben Zobrist.

Zero votes at at all. You know any of those guys jump out at you as as big misses by the the BBWAA in terms of, you know, not keeping them on the ballot for a year.

Paul Hoynes 18:43I don’t think so, Joe.I mean, you know Rodney saved a lot of games.He pitched for a long time.But you know, I I I I just don’t know.I don’t think.None of that.None of out of that group, you know you don’t.No one really grabs me to a little too low.Too low, too low, you know, is the kind of guy that, you know, he had to.

We had great run with the Rockies. Then he kept getting hurt.

Joe Noga 19:12

Mm hmm.

Paul Hoynes 19:13He couldn’t stay healthy when when he went to Toronto, but that’s that’s a guy that, you know I liked and I thought about.But I just.

I just didn’t think he had the staying power that he needed.

Joe Noga 19:27Yeah, it didn’t rise to the level of of of Hall of Fame in in, in my mind and and and really none of those guys, all of them had great careers and and we take into consideration just being on the ballot means that you you had a great.Career. You had something that was, you know, worth recognizing in in that way. It’s just it’s it’s tough. The the guys that make it are the top percent. You know, the top.You know group.Both guys there and Ichiro Sabathia and and and Wagner are all certainly fit that bill for next season. Let’s talk about Manny Ramirez and Omar Vasquez on this list.Manny Ramirez, actually 135 votes 34.3%.You’re talking about a guy who’s being held back, obviously because of the the PEDs and that that whole situation if if you took what he did on the field and and looked at it pure numbers wise, I think Manny’s a no doubt Hall of Famer but you know.It’s starting to loosen up, maybe a little bit.I don’t know if there’s gonna be enough time for, you know, Ramirez to be on the ballot for people to come around and quite enough for him.

But 34.3% of the vote is a is a good showing.

Paul Hoynes 20:48Yeah, this is, you know, next year will be his last year on the ballot, Joe. He earned 34 point 3032.5% last year.He’s right at just about the same percentage of votes this year.I I just don’t think Manny’s getting in and you know there’s been a lot of speculation about certain players that never tested positive for steroids and they didn’t get in. The problem with Manny as he tested positive.

And I I still think that’s why he’s he’s not in, if you know, if he had, if he had played drug free.

Joe Noga 21:17

Right.

Paul Hoynes 21:25I mean, this guy was as close to a first ballot Hall of Famer as as you’re going to be.

And unfortunately, that’s not the case.

Joe Noga 21:33Yeah. And not the case.Also with Omar Viskel, who seems to be heading in the opposite direction, 70 total votes for Omar 17.8% of the vote. He he obviously dropped from last year as well as he’s continued to do so since the controversy over his behavior outside of, you know.The field in in terms of you know.The controversies that he faces just do you think at this point?The voters who, you know, had had him trending in the right direction prior to the the scandals.

Are are now pretty much resigned to hey, if he’s going to get in the Heis committee’s gonna have to do it.

Paul Hoynes 22:16Yeah, I would think so, Joe. He he stayed right about the same percentage from last year. He he received 17.8% of the vote this year.Last year was 17.7%.He will be in his.He’ll have his ninth year of eligibility next year, so he’s he’s in a Omar’s in a tough spot. And like you said, Joe, if if he’s going to get the Hall of Fame, it’s going to have to be by the year of committees.And I, you know, it’s just, you know, but this was a guy, Joe, who had who was zooming up the charts when he first became eligible.I mean, he had at one point had over 50% of the vote if if the if the scandals as you call them, hadn’t surfaced he I think he’d be already in the Hall of Fame right now.But unfortunately you know this, this happened.And I don’t know.I mean, it just has has scuttled his his Hall of Fame.

Chances.

Joe Noga 23:15Yeah, you you could hear it in in your voice as somebody who you know is familiar with Omar and it it covered him for for so many years. And you know, knows the talent that’s there and and the talent that deserves to sort of be in the hall.Of fame.It’s it’s frustrating to see for for sure that you know this is this is the situation that he’s in right now.Not to excuse, you know, any sort of, you know, behavior or whatever. Just saying.That you know from a, you know strictly the the the perspective that we have it’s it’s it’s just disappointing I guess is is the best way to put it.But yeah, that’s that’s the way it is, because the Hall of Fame is an exclusive club here.This is, you know, you’re talking about the best of the best and you know the standards. They should be high.They have to be high in order to get there.Guys like Ichiro, guys like.CC.Sabathia and Billy Wagner, there’s no doubt about the character that they’re carrying.Into the Hall of Fame and they will be going in alongside Dave Parker and ****.Yeah.Alongside Dave Parker and **** Allen in July, July.What 26/27/28?Hall of farmers all, all the class of 2025, also joined by Tom Boswell, the Bbwa Career Excellence Award winner and our own Tom Hamilton, Cleveland’s Ford C Frick Award winner.He’ll be going into the Hall of Fame as well, or recognized in the.

The wing there at the hall should be a tremendous weekend in Cooperstown in late in late July, with a lot of Cleveland flavor. Certainly this this year should be something to look forward to.

Paul Hoynes 25:14Yeah, that’s gonna be great, Joe.I mean, a lot of Cleveland fans will have to make that that drive up to through through Utica and up into Cooperstown because.This doesn’t happen too often.You got you got Hammy going in, you got CC going in.

Just just a great, great class.

Joe Noga 25:33Yeah. And there will be a tremendous number of Japanese baseball fans.I’m I’m certain they they travel well and they will be there to represent Ichiro going into Cooperstown. All right, hoynsie, that’s going to wrap up today’s edition of the Cleveland Baseball Talk Podcast.Lots to talk about for the rest of the week here. I think tomorrow maybe we can get into the relationship between.CC and Carl Willis and and and talk about that.

Let’s let’s reconvene here tomorrow morning and we’ll see you then.

Paul Hoynes 26:07Yes. Cece Boyle boy, what a tip of the camp to Karl.

That was cool last night.

Joe Noga 26:12

Yeah, alright. We talk to you on tomorrow’s podcast.

Paul Hoynes 26:16

Alrighty.