On February 17, 1990, the Yankees signed a young Panamanian by the name of Mariano Rivera. Mo, as he would go on to be called, was a starting pitcher when he made his Major League debut in 1995. He struggled through his first four Major League starts, going 2-2, while posting a 10.20 ERA, with 8 walks in 15 innings pitched. He was sent back to Columbus for a little more work before re-joining the team 2 weeks later. During his time back in the minors, the Yankees, unsure of his future in pinstripes, considered trading him to the Tigers for David Wells.
Fortunately for the Yankees, they didn’t trade Mariano. He was converted to a reliever, and the rest is history. In 1996, Rivera would set-up for John Wetteland in Game 6 of the World Series, giving the franchise their 23rd title, laying the foundation for a dynasty in the making. By 1997, Rivera was the full-time closer, where he would rack up an astounding 652 saves, an MLB record. That’s right, he also has 42 other saves in time known as October, where he thrived the most, for a grand total of 694 career saves!
Look, I am not telling you anything you don’t already know. The fact is, Mariano Rivera is one of the greatest Yankees of all-time. On the field, and off the field, the guy was, and still is a class-act. It was awesome watching him for the 19 years he was in pinstripes. Before I end this article, I figured I would throw some numbers your way… just because they are so much fun to look at!
Regular Season Stats
- 1,283.2 innings pitched
- 652 saves
- 2.21 ERA
- 1,173 strikeouts
- 1.00 WHIP
- 4.10 K/BB
Postseason Stats
- 141.0 innings pitched
- 42 saves
- 0.70 ERA
- 11 earned runs
- 110 strikeouts
- 0.76 WHIP
- 2 home runs
Be sure to share some of your favorite Mariano Rivera moments in the comments section below, or send me a tweet: @Brian_Capozzi.
