Mariano Rivera Will Retire
Mariano Will Get One More Contract. But Retirement is Coming Soon.
The Yankees have not offered a contract extension to Mariano Rivera. They will. They are not dumb. But Yankee fans must accept that Mo will call it a career very soon.
It's unthinkable. The New York Yankees, these New York Yankees, without Mariano Rivera. Well, it may be unthinkable, but it's going to happen. Right now, it seems like it might happen sooner rather than later.
Mariano Rivera's Career Statistics
In case you live under a rock, Rivera is the Greatest Closer in Baseball History. He has 413 saves and an ERA of 2.29 over his career. He has been runner-up for the Cy Young Award three times. He made the All-Star Team nine of the last ten years. His post-season stats are even more stunning: A 17-8 record, with 34 saves, and a 0.80 ERA in 113 innings. Oh, and he is only getting better. Impossible? No. Not impossible at all.
Rivera's last four seasons have probably been his best years as a Yankee. He has averaged 42 Saves and a 1.69 ERA over that time. The man is nothing short of phenomenal. He is the Sandman, for God's Sake. But there may be a problem. His contract expires at the end of 2007, and the Bombers have not yet approached him to discuss an extension.
This has ticked off Mariano. Never one to say anything controversial about his team, Rivera recently hit the back pages of the New York tabloids for something other than his magnificence. Frustrated with management, Rivera recently told a reporter, "if they don't give me the respect that I deserve, I have to move on. The Yankees always give me the respect. When the time comes, if they want me back, they want me back. Otherwise, I have to move on."
Rivera, moving on? Nooooooooo!!!!! But it may happen. Correction. It will happen. Not this year, and not next year either. The Yankees will not let Mariano leave or retire on bad terms. That would be a public relations nightmare. He will sign an extension and pitch until at least 2009 or 2010. But the recent hype has forced Yankee fans to face the ultimate truth: the day is coming when Mariano Rivera will retire. When he will quit the game forever. No more Cutter. No More Broken Bats. No More Metallica. No more summers flirting with a sub-1.00 ERA. No more 50-Save seasons. Also, no more Number 42. Not anywhere in the Majors. Rivera's retirement will put to rest the famous number he wears on his back. Jackie Robinson's number. Jackie represented everything that was good and right about baseball. So does Rivera. It is only fitting that he is the last man to wear number 42.
Rivera's Retirement Will Kill Yankee Fans
"The Horror, the Horror." Those were the words that Colonel Kurtz used to describe war at the end of Apocalypse Now. They are also the words that come to the minds of Yankee fans when they think of Rivera leaving the game. The Horror from the past. The Horror of Lee Guetterman and Greg Cadaret in the bullpen. The Horror that visits in the dead of night with the faces of Eric Plunk, Cecilio Guante, Bob Shirley, and so many other guys the Yankees tried to use to finish off games in the 80's and early 90's. The Horror, the Horror.
No man can be great forever. No man can even be good for the majority of his life. When the day comes for Mariano Rivera to finally hang 'em up, well, that indeed will be a very tough day for Yankee fans.
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