5 BOROUGH SPORTS

There, I said it. Of course Mariano Rivera the greatest reliever of all-time, but I’m going to take it one step further and say he’s the most dominant. After recording his 602nd save on Monday afternoon, Rivera surpassed Trevor Hoffman as the all-time saves leader. But this stat isn’t the reason why he’s the most dominant. Think about it- Mo has dominated Major League Baseball for 17 years (mostly during the Steroid Era) with one pitch, the cut fastball. He is undoubtedly the most valuable Yankee ever since he came up as a rookie in 1995. During that period, Rivera lead the Yanks to five World Championships and seven American League pennants. He has finished in the top 15 in the MVP voting seven times and in the top 5 in the Cy Young voting five times…as a reliever. But these stats aren’t even close to the reason why he’s the most dominant pitcher. For 17 years, hitters haven’t even come close to figuring his stuff out. With that one pitch, he has made future hall of famers and players that have been juiced out of their minds look stupid in the batters box. He has quietly put together an unmatchable resume. Without Mariano, the Yankees don’t have a dynasty. Now at 43, Rivera still looks unhittable posting a 1.98 ERA this season with 43 saves, and counting. Congratulations Mo – your perfection is an inspiration to us all.

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