A pitcher hasn't been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame from the Baseball Writers' Association of America ballot since Mariano Rivera, Roy Halladay and Mike Mussina made the cut in 2019.

Not since 1956 to '61 -- during a period in which the BBWAA cast votes in only even-numbered years -- has so much time passed without a pitcher reaching Cooperstown off of the writers' ballot.

However, CC Sabathia should end that drought in 2025. Here are four reasons why he deserves to be elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.

Look at all those quality innings

Any story or speech or plaque honoring Sabathia's illustrious career is almost guaranteed to contain one certain word: workhorse. That's because no pitcher over the past 30-plus years carried a heavier burden on their shoulders than the 6-foot-6 left-hander.

• 10 defining moments of CC's storied career

Sabathia debuted with Cleveland in 2001 and threw 3,577 1/3 innings over 19 seasons. That's the most innings from any pitcher who has debuted since 1989. It all started in that first season as Sabathia logged 180 1/3 innings as a 20-year-old rookie. He attained 180 innings 13 times during his career. The only pitchers to do that more often in the Wild Card Era (since 1995) are Hall of Famer Greg Maddux (14) and Mark Buehrle (15).

But Sabathia didn't just eat a lot of innings; he got results. His career 116 ERA+ is better than luminaries such as Nolan Ryan, Robin Roberts and Ferguson Jenkins, to name a few. Sabathia's 61.8 bWAR ranks 10th in MLB history among left-handed starters. Seven of the nine names ahead of him on that list are Hall of Famers. The other two are Tommy John and Clayton Kershaw, a likely future first-ballot Hall of Famer.

Given how frequently starting pitchers can suffer debilitating injuries, Sabathia's ability to take the ball time and time again -- and deliver -- strengthens his Hall of Fame candidacy.

3,000 and 250

When you are as effective and durable as Sabathia was during his career, you are going to produce some lofty numbers. Two in particular lie at the center of his Cooperstown case: 3,000 strikeouts and 250 victories.

Sabathia reached both benchmarks in 2019, his final season. He became the 17th pitcher in the 3,000-strikeout club when he whiffed D-backs catcher and former Yankees teammate John Ryan Murphy on April 30. About two months later, Sabathia beat the Rays at Yankee Stadium for his 250th win.

Only 15 pitchers have racked up as many wins and K's. The lone non-Hall of Famer among them is Roger Clemens. And when you account for only left-handed pitchers, Sabathia falls into a very exclusive group. He, Steve Carlton and Randy Johnson are the only three southpaws with 3,000 and 250 on their ledger.

Dominant peak

Sabathia may never have been the undisputed best pitcher in the Majors at any point in his career. But do you remember how excellent he was during his prime?

From 2006-12, he tallied 38.4 bWAR and 29 complete games, which were second only to Halladay, a first-ballot inductee in '19. Sabathia's 140 ERA+ during that seven-season stretch was tied with Halladay for the best in MLB (minimum 1,000 innings pitched), and only Justin Verlander (124) had more wins than Sabathia (122).

Sabathia was also among the top five in Cy Young Award voting five times during this period, including when he won it in 2007. He is one of 23 pitchers to have at least that many top-five finishes. Five of those pitchers are still active (Kershaw, Verlander, Max Scherzer, Gerrit Cole and Chris Sale). Of the 17 others who have been considered on the BBWAA ballot, 14 are in Cooperstown.

A magical three-year run

Just about every Hall of Famer has indelible moments and crowning achievements that immediately come to mind when you reflect upon their storied career. Sabathia experienced those kinds of moments for three different franchises over a three-year span:

2007: The 26-year-old Sabathia won the AL Cy Young Award after going 19-7 with a 3.21 ERA for Cleveland. He also led the Majors in innings (241) and K/BB ratio (5.65) that season.

2008: Following a midseason trade from Cleveland to Milwaukee, Sabathia essentially put the Brewers on his back and carried them to their first playoff appearance in 26 years. He registered an NL-high seven complete games in 17 starts and a 1.65 ERA across 130 2/3 innings. Sabathia capped the best season of his career with a playoff berth-clinching, complete-game triumph over the Cubs in game No. 162.

2009: A free agent after the 2008 season, Sabathia signed a seven-year, $161 million deal with the Yankees. At the time, it was the largest contract for a pitcher in MLB history, but it paid dividends right away. Sabathia went 19-8 with a 3.37 ERA over 230 innings (137 ERA+) to help the Yankees win 103 games one season after they missed the postseason for the first time in 15 years.

Sabathia was then fantastic through five postseason starts, highlighted by a 1.98 ERA in 36 1/3 frames. When all was said and done, the ace celebrated a World Series championship.

Sabathia spent the last 11 seasons of his career with the Bronx Bombers and is considered one of the best free-agent starting pitcher signings in history.