Maybe this time was the last time.
Maybe this 558th start of the indomitable CC Sabathia’s major league career will prove to be the final one before the 39-year-old lefty calls it a day once the season ends.
Maybe this time the spit and bailing wire holding together a right knee that has been an issue for at least six years — and the cause of multiple trips to the injured list the past three seasons and twice this year — have finally given way for good.
This is the takeaway from Friday night when, following a 1-2-3 third inning that included career strikeouts 3,081 and 3,082, Sabathia left a 1-1 game against the Athletics after having thrown 48 pitches when the pain in that knee reached the level of “10,” according to the pitcher.