MARIANO RIVERA'S SUPERMAN, BUT WHY PUSH IT?

Joel Sherman’s piece in the New York Post from July 10th had an interesting headline. He got me in the door just to disappointment me.  Now, I like Sherman, so it’s not a knock against him. He did his job, he got me reading…Damn you Sherman!!!!

In his piece titled Rehab doctor: Rivera could pitch for the Yankees this season, he interviews a Dr. Keith Pyne who suggests that based on Rivera’s work ethic and his athletism, it’s not out of the question that Rivera could pitch this season, but the ultimate view is he’ll be shut down this year. Read HERE. Actually, there were many quotes from Pyne, let's show you these:

He said Rivera "will be in the best position to accomplish that goal (pitching this year). He's got everything it takes to accomplsih that...If I was putting money on it, I would put my money on Mo."

"This  is a very detailed guy and he did everything right (pre surgery)...He strengthened, he got range of motion. He was very functional before surgery. I don't want to put a percentage on it, but he reduced recovery time by a lot."

I read the piece, I read it twice. Sure, Pyne's hinting that Mariano has the will power, ability and drive to come back, but let's be honest, he doesn't exactly say it outright.  My feeling is simple on this... anyone who has watched Mariano Rivera over the years knows that Mariano can do anything, so it's not out the question that Dr. Pyne or Joe Girardi or even my plumber would agree with that statement.  Again, I'm not ripping Sherman, I just saw it as the line from Dumbe and Dumber... "So you're telling me there's a chance!"  
Sherman did quote Brian Cashman on the situation who said of Rivera “in terms of 2012, he’s out.”

Look,  Mariano Rivera is Superman and has done so much in his life to prove so many wrong,  but what the Yankees have right now in the bullpen is something quite special.  You have a Rafael Soriano who’s happy…although you’d never know it because the guy doesn’t smile.  You also have a group of misfit toys that have come together to become one of the most dominant bullpens in baseball right now. That's incredible to me. David Robertson is the greatest, Eppley, Logan, Rapada... I love these guys there.   I’d put them against anyone and sure, we can slam Joe Girardi for mixing and matching way too much, but I actually think he’s handling it well, as long as he doesn’t get trigger happy.

But back the Sherman’s piece.  Yeah, I read it hinting about Mariano coming back is great, but one thing Pyne said confirmed it for me, he said that the ultimate authorities on when Rivera will return are his surgeon, Dr. David Altchek, the Yankees and Rivera himself. And he said the working theory is, "Right now, he's shut down until next year."  So yeah, the indication is Mo works hard and there is always a chance that he could be perfectly healthy by September, but Cashman’s not going to put him out there. He’ll want Mariano's healthy for next year, most likely his last year ever in pinstripes. 

So in concert with Joel Sherman, I did my own interview trying to get to the core of whether or not Mariano will be back this season. I found someone who I thought would be a good person to interview, my 9 year old son, a baseball fanatic, and a brutally honest kid.  Here is that actual interview:

BYB: Mariano Rivera had a torn ACL which is a serious injury and needed to have an operation to get better.  Do you think he will be back this year?

My 9 year old: Was it like when Ryan Howard hurt his leg in the playoffs last year?

BYB: Well, a different injury but still serious.

My 9 year old: Then, no way. Wait, isn’t Mariano old?

BYB: Well, alittle older than me.

My 9 year old: How old are you? 37?

BYB: 40.

My 9 year old: Whoa you’re old. He’s older than you?

BYB: Yes. Do you think Mariano will be back based on everything I just told you?

My 9 year old: Dad, he’s Mariano, he’s Superman but he’s not stupid, next year.

Yeah, that’s about right.  Mariano will be back next year.  My son’s right, Mariano Rivera IS Superman but why push it?  Let him get a year off of rest and train to come back for another season. Right? 

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