Evergreen closer Rivera makes record 1,000th appearance
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}NEW YORK (Reuters) - New York Yankees evergreen closer Mariano Rivera became the first pitcher to make 1,000 career appearances with one team when the slender Panamanian finished up Wednesday's 7-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays.
Rivera has accumulated 572 saves and 75 wins since his first Major League Baseball appearance as a 25-year-old Yankee 16 years ago and helped clinch five World Series rings for the Bronx Bombers.
"You have to be old to do that," the 41-year-old Rivera joked to reporters after Wednesday's game. "But it's a blessing, being with the same team and being able to do that. Most important thing is that we won."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Rivera has grown accustomed to winning, claiming the 1999 World Series MVP and being selected for 11 All Star teams while registering a career earned run average of 2.22 on the strength of a single pitch -- a late breaking, cut fastball.
"It just tells you how great he is at his trade, because he's really never fooled people," manager Joe Girardi said of Rivera's cutter.
"It wasn't like you're looking for a fastball and you get a change-up. Or you're looking for a fastball and you get a curveball.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Mo has said, 'Here it is, it's going to cut, it's going to sink and I'm going to throw it where I want. And try to do something with it.' And I can't think of any pitcher that's really ever done that."
Rivera pitched a scoreless inning Wednesday against Toronto to preserve another Yankees victory.
This season, at age 41, the remarkable Rivera has a 1-0 record with 13 saves and an ERA of 1.71.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}(Writing by Larry Fine in New York; Editing by Mark Lamport-Stokes)