Unless you are totally in left field (wordplay!) you have heard of Mariano Rivera. Greatest closer of all time. "Enter Sandman." Cutter of death. Postseason hero. Simply put, as cliche as it sounds, there will never be another Mariano. Fans of all teams love his professionalism, his work ethic, and his devotion to baseball, family, faith and heritage. Opponents rave about how incredible his on-filed presence is, while also participating in his off-field charity work. Mr. Rivera has been the New York Yankees closer since 1996, wracking up save after save after save, not to mention all the World Series rings. He came into the 2012 season mentioning that it might be his last season. The Yankees were positioned as one of the best teams in Spring Training. Yankee fans began to dream; Could one of the Core Four (Derek Jeter, Andy Petite, Jorge Posada and Rivera) end his career at the pinnacle?
And then yesterday happened. During his routine of shagging flies in the outfield, he went back for a fly ball from Jayson Nix, only to collapse in a heap on the warning track. Joe Girardi ran out to help him as A-Rod could only stand in horror mouthing, "Oh my God, no." After a loss to the Royals, it was announced that Rivera tore his ACL and was out for the season. Fans began to fret. What would happen to the already injured plague pitching staff? Would the Yankees be able to respond? But the, out of nowhere, the realization hit: is Rivera done for good?
Twitter exploded with reactions of sadness and anger at the awful situation . Yankee blogs were flooded with emotional posts. Fans from every team (and even players) responded in shocked sorrow. It was almost as though he had died. If Rivera does have to retire, his icon (and his heroics) will be sorely missed by millions. The common theme of these reactions was this: the freak accident is not fair. Mariano has played baseball the right way, with class and as the best of his position. Why? Why him?
In the midst of all the worry and pain, Mariano Rivera remained- as usual- the most calm and collected of everyone around him. The same man who closed out tense World Series games remained optimistic and wise. But then the question was asked, would he return? Watch the interview. "I don't know." If you don't get chocked up by that humility and passion for the game, then I'm not sure you are human. Despite his composure, even a great man like Rivera could not stand the thought of it being over so randomly. One source called this the "cruelest joke." He should be able to 'go out on his own terms.' Could anything good come from this?
Again, turning to Rivera we can see his poise his despite his misfortune. Watch the interview again. What does he discuss? Staying with the team. Believing that God's plan is better than what he can imagine. He does not even question God despite the terrible turn of events. Even in his broken English, his faith and maturity shine through the dark situation. Will he come back? That is not for now, he maintains. The team needs to stay focused and God has to be glorified. To him, 'fairness' is not even in the equation.
Not only can we learn from his example, but his optimism is awesome. Early today, he tweeted, "I'm coming back. Write it down in big letters. I'm not going out like this. Miracles happen. I love to play the game. To me, going out like this isn't the right way." Thank you for your shining example of humility, professionalism, and excellence, Mr. Rivera. I am excited to see you anchoring the 9th inning next year, as usual. Godspeed, sir.
No comments:
Post a Comment