Best Ever? Mariano Rivera Retiring After This Year

Yankees great set the standard for relief pitchers
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 9, 2013 9:52 AM CST
Best Ever? Mariano Rivera Retiring After This Year
New York Yankees' Mariano Rivera pitches during a workout at spring training Feb. 16 in Tampa.   (AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Mariano Rivera announced today what baseball fans, and especially Yankees fans, could see coming: The 43-year-old is retiring after this season. "There goes the greatest relief pitcher that ever lived," writes Gabe Lacques at USA Today. The numbers make it hard to disagree: Rivera is the game's all-time saves leader by a mile with 608, and he and his legendary cut fastball have achieved the amazing feat of allowing less than a baserunner per inning over his 18-year career.

But it's his playoff record that truly stands out, says Bleacher Report: "In 96 postseason contests, Rivera has gone 8-1 with a 0.70 ERA while recording 42 saves," writes Doug Rush. "He's also been a part of all five Yankees championships since 1996—tossing the series-clinching pitch in four of them." Click for more. (More Mariano Rivera stories.)

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