Sabathia joined Ichiro Suzuki as part of the 2025 Hall of Fame class. Both players were inducted earlier this summer, and each team honored the stars with a ceremony in its stadium. The Yankees spent the majority of the season congratulating Sabathia, reminiscing on all the years he spent as a dominant pitcher in the pinstripes. Now, he is immortalized in the Hall of Fame.
Cole has been recovering from Tommy John surgery he had before the 2025 season kicked off. Despite progressing well in his recovery, pitching in the playoffs is off the table for him. He appeared at Sabathia’s LegaCCy Gala to support the former Yankee. When he spoke to ClutchPoints’ Rob Lepelstat about the star, Cole had nothing but great things to say about the former ace.
Yankees ace @GerritCole45 gives his flowers to @CC_Sabathia when asked by our @RobLep1 to describe him at his #LegaCCy Gala in NYC:
“Competitor, recently HALL OF FAMER, excellent pitcher, true pitcher.” pic.twitter.com/nhV79PUNOB
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) September 13, 2025
“Competitor, No. 1. No. 2 recently, Hall of Famer,” Cole said when describing Sabathia. “I think just an excellent pitcher, a true pitcher. Somebody that started his career throwing one way then finished throwing another way. A wonderful player.”
Sabathia joins a long list of former New York players in the Hall of Fame, something that has inspired this year’s team. Cole is still working his way back onto the pitcher’s mound, but has a good shot at the Hall of Fame himself. If he can put together a healthy campaign in 2026, Boone’s rotation is one of the more formidable groups in the league.
For now, Cole and New York celebrate Sabathia and everything he did with the team. Yankees fans hope that his entrance into the Hall of Fame is what the team needs to make some history itself.
