Mo For Sure

Everybody who has ever been to see the New York Yankees play a home game has seen the ritual unfold. First, the intro to Metallica's "Enter Sandman" begins to play over the loudspeakers across the stadium. Quietly at first, in fact barely audible to those who are in the crowd. Then the music begins to get louder, just slightly louder, as if to awaken the fear that lies deep within the opposing batter's mind. The music gets louder as he makes his way to the bullpen door. As the into changes to one of the most well known riffs in music, the bullpen door swings open. The guitars explode, thousands of flashes go off to catch an image of him, and the fans roar with excitement. He begins his long, slow, trek to the mound with the fans still cheering and the cameras still flashing. After a few warm up pitches, the music stops and it is time to get down to business. Finally, three quick outs later, he is gone as quietly as he entered and John Sterling gives his signature call of "The Yankees Win." This ritual is just another day at the ballpark for Yankees closer Mariano Rivera.

Statistically speaking, there is little question that Mariano Rivera is the greatest closer in baseball history. Rivera has 600 career saves, and he only needs two more to go before he is the all time saves leader. Rivera's career earned run average is a staggering 2.22, and his career WHIP (walks and hits per innings pitched) is 1.00. Rivera also has accumulated 1,106 career strikeouts and has only given up 274 walks in 17 years. But where Rivera is truly scary is when it matters most, in the postseason. Rivera is the proud owner of five world series rings and has the longest consecutive scoreless innings streak, 34 and one thirds innings, in baseball history. Rivera also holds the records for lowest career postseason earned run average at 0.71, the most saves in each postseason round (18 in League division series, 13 League Championship series and 11 world series), and Rivera's nine series clinching games saves are the most in postseason history.

But it is not just the statistics that make Mariano Rivera the thing opposing hitters see in their nightmares. The signature pitch Rivera throws, his cutter, has been untouchable for almost two decades. Rivera could build a log cabin out of all the bats he has broken over the course of his career. Because of Rivera's dominance over the course of his career, the Yankees have had their solution in the ninth inning for 17 years. No other club in baseball can say that.  And for all of the fear that he puts into an opposing batter's mind, his demeanor on the mound remains the same, calm, cool, and collected no mater what the situation may be.

Mariano Rivera is one of those once in a generation pitchers that not only Yankees fans, but baseball fans in general, will be able to say to their kids and grandchildren in their waning years "I saw Mariano Rivera pitch." Rivera may be 41 years old, but his career is not over yet. And until the day he decides to hang up his glove and cutter, batters will have to sleep with one eye open and grip their pillows tight, because they might have to face the sandman the next day.