CC heads to hospital after struggling in heat

ARLINGTON -- CC Sabathia's night started with a hanging slider that landed in the seats for a titanic Josh Hamilton homer, and after toiling in triple-digit temperatures, it ended with the Yankees left-hander admitted to a local hospital for symptoms of dehydration.

Sabathia worked five-plus innings in a 7-6 loss to the Rangers at Globe Life Park, and the Yankees said that he experienced cramping during his post-start ice session. Head athletic trainer Steve Donohue advised that Sabathia visit the nearest hospital, Medical Center of Arlington, as a precaution.

As such, Sabathia did not travel on the Yankees' charter flight to Chicago. The first-pitch temperature in Arlington was recorded at 101 degrees, but according to the team, Sabathia did not show any indication of the dehydration before he came out of the game.

"It's just super hot out there," Yankees catcher Brian McCann said. "We're not used to this. You come in, it's hot, you hope he's OK."

Sabathia matched his season high with nine hits allowed, making the start on regular rest after the Yankees were forced to scratch right-hander Michael Pineda, who was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right forearm flexor tendon.

Staked to an early lead by a three-run first inning against Texas right-hander Yovani Gallardo, Sabathia promptly gave it back, serving up Hamilton's fourth homer of the year with Delino DeShields and Elvis Andrus aboard.

"You know, he struggled. It looked like he was going to get out of the first, and he hung a slider to Hamilton," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "He gave us the five innings, gave us a chance, but again, he had that one big hit that really hurt him."

Shin-Soo Choo also homered in the second inning before Ryan Rua legged out an inside-the-park homer in the fourth, dashing around the bases on a missed Jacoby Ellsbury catch.

"I thought he threw the ball well," McCann said of Sabathia. "He hung the one pitch to Hamilton. He settled down after that, but obviously that was the pitch that put up three runs on the board."

The Hamilton and Choo homers seemed odd to the Yankees because, for all of his struggles against righties, Sabathia had allowed just one homer to a left-handed hitter in 97 plate appearances entering Thursday's start.

"It's not something we've seen a lot, but it was just some breaking balls he left up," Girardi said.

The Yankees had been encouraged by signs that Sabathia was turning around his season-long struggles, but he has now permitted five earned runs in consecutive starts to the Twins and Rangers. Girardi reiterated that the Yankees have no "Plan B," other than to wait it out and hope Sabathia can get on a consistent run.

"Just something you have to keep working on," Girardi said. "That's the only thing you could do. You have to keep working on it and try to get better each time he goes out. Today was strange because the lefties got him, and that's unusual, so we'll have to take a look at it."