Their dads were known for pitching, but Pettitte and Sabathia showing out with some slugging
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A pair of former Yankee greats who stood out on the mound have been watching their sons flex at the plate in the Minor Leagues.
On Tuesday, the sons of Andy Pettitte and CC Sabathia both left the yard for their respective organizations. It also happened to be the third pro homers for the 2026 draftees -- Luke Pettitte and Carsten Sabathia III.
In Florida, Pettitte went deep in a 10-5 win for Single-A Tampa over Jupiter at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium. In North Carolina, Sabathia slugged his roundtripper in Single-A Wilson's 8-5 loss loss to Hickory at Wilson Ballpark.
Pettitte, an eighth-round pick by the Yankees, slugged a center-cut slider 321-foot shot to left-center field off righty Yohanfer Santana (Marlins) in the eighth. The right-handed-hitting first baseman is slashing .350/.435/.900 with three homers, two doubles and eight RBIs through five games.
With his father in the stands for his debut one week ago, the 21-year-old two-way player connected on his first homer. It came 20 years and seven days after the lone homer in Andy Pettitte's 18-year big league career between the Yankees and Astros.
"It was just a pretty surreal moment," Luke said afterward. "Obviously, I get to wear the pinstripes. It's not the Yankee uniform yet, but getting to try and follow in my dad's footsteps and take in what tonight was all about. Having them there, and making the most of every opportunity and every moment that I had, that was really special."
Sabathia, a 20th-round pick by the Brewers, also walloped a homer to left-center, slapping a middle-middle pitch in the fourth off right-hander Connor O'Hara (Rangers). The right-handed-hitting first baseman improved his slash line to .405/.468/.690 with six extra-base hits and nine RBIs in 11 games for the Warbirds.
The Houston product is also playing for one of his father’s former organizations, and just like Luke, Carsten had his dad in the stands for his first pro long ball.
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"It's all smiles in the Sabathia family suite off to our right," Warbirds broadcaster Ben Mihailovich said on Aug. 16. "CC extending his arms up into the air, super cool moment."
In a summer of lineage, two of the best lefties of the 2000s will continue to be watching the field the way others used to watch them to see what's next for their respective sons.