He insisted: "I don't think starting on 3 days' rest had anything to do with it," Sabathia said.
He said it was his inability to make pitches, his inability to throw strikes when he had to, his inability to close out innings.
Why?
"I felt fine . . . It was just one of those nights," he replied.
He hasn't had one of those nights since April.
Shane Victorino's two-out grand slam propelled the Phils to a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series that now moves to Milwaukee, where it will continue tomorrow.
Sabathia, acquired from Cleveland in a July 6 trade, might have thrown his last pitch as a Brewer. He will be a free agent after the playoffs, a blue-chipper who should command the sort of cash and stability Johan Santana got from the Mets (6 years, $137.5 million).
In his last four playoff outings, which include three postseason starts last year with the Indians, Sabathia has given up 20 runs, all earned, on 27 hits, 19 walks and 14 homers . . . in just 19 innings.
Last night's exhibition was particularly painful to watch.
"It didn't seem anything like last year," said Sabathia, who had blamed his 2007 failings on over-throwing, pitching with too much adrenaline and too much urgency.
With less of each, last night's exhibition was particularly painful to watch.
Phillies starter Brett Myers, an .047 hitter the past three seasons, battled heroically, if awkwardly, from 0-2, wrapping three foul balls around two offspeed pitches in the dirt. Pitch No. 9, ball four, wasn't close, and Sabathia seemed lost.
He walked Jimmy Rollins on four pitches to load the bases. He regrouped against Victorino, but hung a 1-2 changeup that Victorino pulled over the short leftfield wall for a 5-1 Phillies lead.
That was Sabathia's 31st pitch of the inning. He struck out Chase Utley on three pitches and exited with 34 in the inning, 51 overall. He left the game with the bases loaded and two outs in the fourth inning having thrown 98 pitches.
