Surprisingly, some of you thought I was being serious yesterday when I made that crack about no one giving hell to Mariano Rivera for not changing his number on Jackie Robinson Day. Of course I know that he wears 42, the last player allowed to do so by virtue of being the last active player who was wearing it when Major League Baseball retired it in 1997.
There’s no way it ever could have been predicted back in 1997 that he would be the last man to wear the number, but I’m struggling to think of anyone more worthy of it than Rivera. The guy just oozes grace and professionalism. Indeed, it’s hard to point out anyone who played in between Jackie Robinson’s retirement and Rivera’s debut who ranks higher in these categories than Mo does.
The New York Times has a nice piece about Rivera and 42 this morning. Worth a read on one of baseball’s most special days.
