Mariano Rivera Hit a Base Knock Off Andy Pettitte at Yankees Old-Timers' Day

Hard-hitting slugger Mariano Rivera?
Mariano Rivera stepped up to the playe at Yankees Old-Timers' Day
Mariano Rivera stepped up to the playe at Yankees Old-Timers' Day / Screengrab via YES Network
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Mariano Rivera made the most of an opportunity to pick up the lumber Saturday at Yankees Old-Timers' Day.

New York's traditional alumni game commemorated the 25th anniversary of their 2000 World Series team which included Yankee legends like Rivera, Andy Pettitte, Derek Jeter and Jorge Posada. The game, which normally spans two or three innings, gave the Hall of Fame closer a chance to step up to the plate as Pettitte was on the hill.

Rivera was locked in and laced a ground ball through the infield and into left for a single. The base hit moved Posada to second and put a big smile on Rivera's face as he rounded first base and laughed with Pettitte while getting some praise from Johnny Damon.

Not too shabby from Major League Baseball's all-time leader in saves:

Rivera didn't record a hit over his illustrious 19-year career that included 13 All-Star appearances and five World Series titles. He only had four plate appearances and three at-bats, though. There's no reason for a closer—especially one in the American League while Rivera played—to take at-bats. Maybe he should've gotten a chance here and there at the dish, though.

His hard-hit ball on Pettitte is a base hit in any league.


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Blake Silverman
BLAKE SILVERMAN

Blake Silverman is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation's Detroit Bad Boys and A10Talk. He graduated from Michigan State University before receiving a master's in sports journalism from St. Bonaventure University. Outside of work, he's probably binging the latest Netflix documentary, at a yoga studio or enjoying everything Detroit sports. A lifelong Michigander, he lives in suburban Detroit with his wife, young son and their personal petting zoo of two cats and a dog.