The New York Yankees say the decision to push back left-hander C.C. Sabathia’s start against the Twins by a day had nothing to do with a weekend incident in Toronto where Sabathia had to be restrained from a fight.
Sabathia was originally scheduled to start Monday night’s series opener at Yankee Stadium, but that start was instead pushed to Tuesday and Bryan Mitchell (0-1) will instead make a spot start on Monday.
Girardi just learned of Sabathia brawl this afternoon when he got to park: "It has nothing to do with us changing our rotation."
— Mike BerardinoNDI (@MikeBerardino) August 17, 2015
Girardi decided to push rotation back to give Nova an extra day. Bullpen was fresh after Toronto series.
— Mike BerardinoNDI (@MikeBerardino) August 17, 2015
That doesn’t mean that Sabathia won’t face some type of penalty from the incident Saturday night in Toronto.
Girardi won't comment on whether Sabathia will face discipline from NYY.
— Mike BerardinoNDI (@MikeBerardino) August 17, 2015
In the video published Monday by TMZ, Sabathia is seen yelling and pointing as a brawl begins to break out early Saturday morning outside of a Toronto nightclub. Sabathia was forced into a car before the melee ensued.
According to TMZ, it’s still unclear what caused the incident.
The language in the video is quite strong.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-eGsPnfgVMY
According to the New York Post, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman backed up Girardi’s comments noting that it was to give starters in the rotation an extra day of rest.
“I think, in your behavior, you have to be more careful today than you ever have,” Girardi told reporters Monday afternoon of learning of the situation.
Girardi on TMZ era: "Now it's instantly uploaded and millions of people see it. When you're out in public, everything is fair game."
— Mike BerardinoNDI (@MikeBerardino) August 17, 2015
