Sabathia (5-4) held the Twins to a single run on six hits over six innings in Thursday's win. He struck out seven and walked three.

EDGE Analysis

Although Sabathia's approaching his 36th birthday next month, he's been pitching like a much younger man, with his 2.20 ERA placing him among the American League leaders if he had enough innings to qualify. That said, there's plenty of reason to expect Sabathia to fall back, and painfully -- his FIP is a full point higher than his ERA, and his xFIP (considered the best predictor of future ERA) is more than two full runs higher. That's because Sabathia has benefited from solid strand-rate luck and unbelievable fly-ball luck -- his HR/FB is a minuscule 3.1 percent, which is an impossible figure to sustain. Of course, it's worth noting that Sabathia is generating softer contact than he has in years. His batted-ball stats in 2016 look a lot like the ones from his heyday, so this isn't all smoke and mirrors.