Blog: Hardball
David Robertson has the stuff. But to be the closer for the Yankees, in New York, in place of Mariano Rivera, the more important element is going to be this — does he have the Right Stuff?
More than even his cutter — arguably the most devastating single pitch in major league history — Rivera had a cocktail of traits that made him ideally suited to be not just a closer, but the closer for a franchise with the most pressure, expectations and history.
On a scale of 1-to-10, Rivera maxes out when it comes to being unflappable, self-confident, humble, dignified, a great teammate and determined. Each trait brought vital pieces to a mosaic of greatness.
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David Robertson
By being unflappable, Rivera never came undone no matter the meaning of a game. His unflinching self-confidence allowed him to compartmentalize failure as no more than a blip, which translated to his teammates. Thus, no blown save was ever seen as a wildfire that would spread to more failure.
His humility and dignity kept him grounded and made even foes respect him rather than gain any extra incentive by wanting to beat the preening caricature of a closer. By being a great teammate, Rivera never stirred any negative mojo in the workplace. Instead, his steadiness, leadership, humanity and willingness to offer help and counsel to any corner of the roster encased Rivera in a cocoon of positivity within his clubhouse. Some teammates are liked. Some are respected. Rivera is uniquely revered by the very teammates who put their uniforms on one pants leg at a time beside him.
“We live in an age when athletes are packaged,” general manager Brian Cashman said. “Mariano is exactly as he is packaged. He is a wonderful human being as well as an amazing athlete. I think that is why we all had that reaction when we saw him in pain and wincing [after suffering a torn ACL on the warning track Thursday at Kauffman Stadium]. We are used to seeing Mo either determined or joyful. So that was unsettling.”
His steely determination was on display again yesterday when he vowed to return and not leave a great career as an injured player. Still, he is about to exit for months or possibly to next year and — look, he is 42 — if the surgery/rehab does not go well, maybe forever. Thus, the biggest shoes in baseball are going to need to be filled for quite a while, at the least.
So it is instructional to remember Rivera had a starting point, too, before everyone knew he had the Right Stuff. It is easy to forget now the uncertainty that existed when the Yankees passed the closer baton to Rivera. There was no Enter Sandman. No halo of invincibility. Like Robertson now, he had been a brilliant set-up man during the Yankees’ 1996 championship season.
Nevertheless, John Wetteland earned four saves and the World Series MVP before leaving for Texas in free agency and, as Cashman said, “We believed Mariano could do it, but you still have to prove it.”
The Yankees were eliminated in the Division Series in ’97 because, in part, Rivera allowed a homer to Cleveland’s Sandy Alomar Jr. in Game 4 and, rather than clinching, the Yankees went on to lose in five. It could have been a baseball coffin moment. Instead, Rivera recovered in a way no one ever had or probably ever will.
He converted his next 23 postseason saves, serving as the backbone to a dynasty. He then blew Game 7 of the 2001 World Series and followed that by pitching to a 0.58 ERA in his next (final?) 44 postseason games.
How do you follow that — even if it is just as a substitute for a few months?
To lower the pressure, manager Joe Girardi would not commit to one man between Robertson and Rafael Soriano. But Robertson will probably get a chance to earn the distinction. He has a dominant fastball, which, at this point, is probably even more devastating than Rivera’s cutter. His 12.17 strikeouts per nine innings are tied with Rob Dibble (minimum 200 appearances) for the best in major league history. He is well liked in the clubhouse, an earnest, hard-working, homegrown righty. But it is all guesswork how anyone will handle the responsibilities of replacing Rivera.
Rivera followed a World Series MVP, which comes with an extreme degree of difficulty. But not in the same universe as stepping in for Rivera.
Thus, Robertson or whoever comes along to try this, is going to need more than a blessed arm. Stuff will get you the job. But only the Right Stuff will allow you to keep it.
joel.sherman@nypost.com
Mariano Rivera, Rivera, the Yankees, the Yankees, Robertson online, Robertson
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