Sabathia excited about Yankees' offseason moves

The Yankees' offseason this year might not have been the most memorable to some, but team pitcher CC Sabathia likes the moves they made. 

Sabathia expressed excitement for the players the Yankees have acquired when asked about them Friday night at the first ever boxing card for Roc Nation Sports, the sports agency the left-hander signed with last January. Sabathia, whose hasn't played since late may due to a knee injury, specifically named third baseman Chase Headley and reliever Andrew Miller, and gave his own take on New York as a whole.

"I'm excited to get Chase back," Sabathia told The New York Daily News' Mitch Abramson. "I like the Andrew Miller signing. I think we're in a good spot. Obviously [the front office] made a lot of moves, a lot of transitions, lot of good stuff but I think we'll be fine."

Transitions like letting right-handers Brandon McCarthy and David Robertson sign elsewhere and trading longtime catcher Francisco Cervelli to the Pirates, things that will likely affect the Yankees next season. 

McCarthy was 7-5 with a 2.89 ERA in 14 starts, Roberton successfully converted 39/44 save opportunities and Cervelli hit .301 in 49 games off the bench for them last year, so their absence will certainly be noticeable in the future. Still, deciding not to pursue Roberton did help garner the Yankees' interest in Miller and dealing Cervelli gave them control of lefty Justin Wilson, so it's not like the club didn't get plenty in return.

Not that that's Sabathia's biggest concern or anything.

"Just to be healthy," he said when asked what his hopes for next year are. "If I can be healthy I'm sure all that other stuff will fall in place."

If recent history is indicative of anything, that's a mindset the entire Yankees rotation could use right now, as four of the five hurlers in the group last season went on the DL at some point. The only who didn't, coincidentally, was Hiroki Kuroda, also the only one who left the Yankees this winter.

That leaves Masahiro Tanaka, Michael Pineda, Ivan Nova and Sabathia as those who will attempt to stay on the field more next year, a feat they might have a hard time accomplishing due to the severity of their individual wounds.