The Super Bowl is America’s most-hyped sports event of the year, so it’s perhaps no surprise that there are plenty of oddities that go with it—such as half time act Madonna getting her very own press conference. Among the questions asked was one about the rumored painting of Rodriguez ...

A funny thing happend on Phil Hughes’ road to stardom. Phil Hughes: Here he comes again... again. (AP) In his second-ever start, Hughes flirted with a no-hitter, and then he got hurt. Injuries returned again in 2008, limiting him to just 34 innings that season. In 2009, Hughes moved to the bullpen to ...

Who wants to see a great player struggle? During this offseason, there has been much speculation as to when Mariano Rivera will choose to retire, something he dropped hints about last season. My only preference is that whenever he does it, it’s too soon rather than too late. I don’t want to see Rivera ...

Every once in awhile, even Mariano “602” Rivera needs a day off. Who were the Yankees non-Mo closers from 1997 to 2011? Finding out requires a journey through the transient bullpen-dwellers of yesteryear. Ramiro Mendoza 16 Mike Stanton 15 Steve Karsay 12 Kyle Farnsworth 7 Jeff Nelson 7 Tom ...

With his 602nd save, Mariano Rivera is now the all-time leader.We’ve had plenty to say about Mariano Rivera lately, but on the occasion of him notching his record-setting 602nd save on Monday afternoon against the Twins, another round of congratulations is in order. As Steve wrote the other day, ...

Mariano Rivera in the process of picking up his record-tying 601st save at the Rogers Centre on Saturday. (AP) There has been no shortage of articles praising Mariano Rivera in the past week, all well deserved, and many, particularly Steve’s piece in this space earlier this week, well worth your ...

Mariano Rivera: Mr. Serenity? (AP) One of the first baseball stories I ever had professionally published was on the very slight differences among closers of different abilities. This was 1997 or 1998, before anyone knew that Mariano Rivera was going to be a Hall of Famer—although looking back on it, ...

Mariano Rivera's 600th save didn't get away, but long ago, he almost did. (AP) The most famous unconsummated trade in baseball history is the one that would have sent Joe DiMaggio to the Red Sox for Ted Williams. As legend goes, Yankees owner Dan Topping and Sox owner Tom Yawkey agreed to the ...

A class act since 1995, and soon the all-time saves leader. Normally, I would be going on about how saves are an overrated statistic, but in this case, 600 merely ratifies the man’s indisputable greatness. For once there is nothing more that need be said.  Read More →

Mariano Rivera's recent struggles have the pitcher and everyone who follows him looking for answers. (AP) A few quick morning links for a Friday: • I was in the Yankee Stadium press box for Thursday’s game, which for the most part was a fairly pleasant afternoon highlighted by home runs from ...

It's not the haircut, it's the homers. And the walks. (AP) Tuesday night’s Yankees loss to the Angels had so many frustrating elements to it, so many reasons to throw objects at the TV set, to momentarily feel kinship with the enraged London rioters, that it’s tough to know where ...

I’m not sure what was stranger about last night’s game, that Mariano Rivera had a second bad outing in a row, that Jeff Mathis is the worst hitter of all time except apparently when swinging against the Yankees, Curtis Granderson going for the fake-to-third gag, or that Bobby Abreu, who had left ...