As a result, Sabathia will be unavailable to pitch in the Yankees' 2015 postseason. The Yankees host the Houston Astros in the AL wild-card game Tuesday night.
"Today I am checking myself into an alcohol rehabilitation center to receive the professional care and assistance needed to treat my disease. I love baseball and I love my teammates like brothers, and I am also fully aware that I am leaving at a time when we should all be coming together for one last push toward the World Series.
"It hurts me deeply to do this now, but I owe it to myself and to my family to get myself right. I want to take control of my disease, and I want to be a better man, father and player.
"As difficult as this decision is to share publicly, I don't want to run and hide. But for now please respect my family's need for privacy as we work through this challenge together.
"Being an adult means being accountable. Being a baseball player means that others look up to you. I want my kids -- and others who may have become fans of mine over the years -- to know that I am not too big of a man to ask for help.
"I want to hold my head up high, have a full heart and be the type of person again that I can be proud of. And that's exactly what I am going to do," Sabathia said in a statement.
"CC has demonstrated a great deal of courage in trying to tackle this problem, Time and place have no bearing. There is something here that needs to be taken care of, and I applaud him.
"What CC is dealing with is a life issue. It is bigger than the game [Tuesday] night," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said.
Yankees manager Joe Girardi echoed Cashman's thoughts.
"I give CC a lot of credit because it takes a lot of courage for someone, a man, to step up and say, 'I need help,' " Girardi said.
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