Mariano Rivera
Mariano Rivera (born November 29, 1969, Panama City, Panama) is a Panamanian baseball player who was widely considered the greatest reliever of all time. As a member (1995–2013) of the New York Yankees, he won five World Series titles (1996, 1998–2000, and 2009).
Rivera was raised in the small fishing village of Puerto Caimito, Panama. He finished high school at 16 and began working on his father’s fishing boat, playing baseball and association football (soccer) by using makeshift equipment on the beach in his spare time. At age 20 he was signed by a Yankees scout and left for the United States to play in the club’s minor-league system. He made his Major League Baseball debut in 1995, splitting his time as a middling starting pitcher and a reliever before being moved into the bullpen full-time the following season.
In June 1997, three months into his first season as the Yankees’ closer, Rivera’s fastball suddenly began to drop—or cut—as it neared the plate. He had not consciously made any change to his delivery, but his cut fastball became nearly unhittable, and Rivera vaulted to stardom. Throwing the cutter almost exclusively, he led the American League in saves three times (1999, 2001, and 2004) and was named an All-Star on 13 occasions over the course of his career. On September 19, 2011, Rivera notched his record-breaking 602nd career save, and over the next two seasons, he extended his record to 652 saves, with a career earned-run average (ERA) of 2.21. Moreover, when he retired in 2013, Rivera had a lifetime adjusted ERA (ERA+; an ERA adjusted for opponents and ballparks, with the average major-league pitcher set at 100) of 205, far and away the highest ERA+ ever.
Although Rivera’s regular-season accomplishments were extraordinary, his performance in the playoffs placed him head and shoulders above other great relievers. He was a key member of five World Series championship teams and appeared in two Series losses. During his 16 postseasons with the Yankees, Rivera played in 96 games, secured a record 42 saves, and pitched 141 innings while allowing a mere 11 earned runs. That left him with a career postseason ERA of 0.70, the lowest of all time by 0.13, despite his having pitched more than 100 more innings than the runner-up during one of the most hitter-friendly periods in major-league history.
Rivera’s autobiography, The Closer (cowritten by Wayne Coffey), was published in 2014. In 2019 he was named on all 425 ballots submitted by the electorate of the Baseball Hall of Fame, becoming the first unanimous inductee in the history of that institution. Later that year U.S. Pres. Donald Trump awarded Rivera the Presidential Medal of Freedom.