July 17, 2006

He Sprang Fully Formed From the Head of... John Wetteland?

I knew that he was close to 400, but until yesterday I hadn't realized that Mariano Rivera was so close to Lee Smith's all-time saves record. Smith's stats are obviously very good, but more than anything else he seems to have had had longevity on his side, pitching from 1980 until 1997-- which is the year Mo started closing regulary. If he can pitch two more years, you have to assume he's got a great chance at the record (depending on what happens with Trevor Hoffman and his 460 saves in the meantime, I suppose).

Mariano is also one of the very, very few players who can talk frequently about god without making me roll my eyes. Maybe because he seems genuinely humble and kind... or, possibly, he just actually is a god. Makes as much sense as anything else.

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