Mariano Rivera, the celebrated former closer for the New York Yankees, sustained a tear to one of his Achilles tendons during the team’s 77th annual gathering of former players on Saturday. His representative, Fernando Cuza, communicated this information to The Athletic. Rivera is scheduled to undergo a surgical procedure in the coming days.
Roger Clemens, previously a teammate of Rivera’s, initially reported the injury during a radio broadcast on WFAN. The injury to Rivera apparently happened when he made a move on defense during an at-bat by Willie Randolph — he took a step forward prior to falling. In the previous portion of the inning, Rivera had managed to hit a single off of Andy Pettitte:
Rivera, who is currently 55 years old, played for 19 years in MLB, all with the Yankees. The team initially signed him out of Panama with a $2,000 bonus back in 1990. During his time with the Yankees, Rivera utilized his signature cut fastball, posting a 2.21 ERA, achieving a record of 652 saves, and being chosen for the All-Star team 13 times. He became known as the greatest closer in baseball history. Rivera was remarkably effective in 96 career postseason appearances. He stands alone as the only player to be unanimously inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
The event held on Saturday at Yankee Stadium was to honor the Yankees’ 2000 World Series victory. Many significant individuals from that team were present, including Rivera, Clemens, and the manager, Joe Torre:
Saturday’s game was the first such event held by the Yankees since 2019. It preceded the Yankees’ eventual victory over the Houston Astros with a score of 5-4.
