Yanks Go To Mo In Time of Need

How great is Mariano Rivera? We have said this many times before but he's as close to a sure thing in baseball as you can get. He's quiet possibly having the best season of his career.

With the Yankees in state of urgency as the season winds down, each game is a must-win. How badly do the Yanks need to win games these days? Rivera has pitched more than one inning in five of his last six appearances. That's a strecth that is usually reserved for October.
"You don't want to do it for a long time," Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. "We're very careful with how we use him. Mo, obviously, is so economical with his pitches. We would never abuse a pitcher."

Rivera allowed a hit last night to Vernon Wells with one out in the 9th inning that ended a streak of 27 straight hitless batters. He's been the most reliable guy on the team. Ok maybe if you bring him in in a tie game you get a different Mo, but when he's in a save situation, you pretty much know the game's over. He has 32 saves for the season.

He's the best in the business at what he does. The best ever in history. I have no problem with Girardi using Rivera as much as he has in recent times. He's managing as if every game is the 7th game of the World Series. The Yankees are in crisis mode and need to do whatever it takes to win. If that means Rivera comes in for more than 3 outs to get a save, then so be it. These are tough and challenging times so do whatever you need to win.
"We need to win," Rivera said. "It's not like playoff-type, but we still need to win. You have to prepare yourself for that situation. If I have to go four or five outs, that's OK."
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