A few thoughts from the Sandman
Posted by: Peter Abraham - Posted in Misc on Jan 23, 2008 
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Mariano Rivera held a fan function at Mo’s New York Grill last night. Michael Kay was the host. The night included a Q&A session with the legendary closer.
One of our readers, J.J., was on hand and reported that Mo had some interesting things to say.
Rivera is against the Johan Santana deal because he believes Melky Cabrera, Phil Hughes and Ian Kennedy will develop into top-flight players
He’s sentimental about leaving Yankee Stadium and suggested he might retire if the Yankees win the World Series. “I will be hanging on to the columns and you will have to pull me out of there,” he said.
Mo told the fans that Jorge Posada is very tight with Joe Girardi and he believes their relationship will be a positive one.
I agree with everything Moe said..
Go Mo!
Yankees and Giants are starting to show Boston what’s up. (OK, so the last time the Yanks and Sox were in action the Sox won the WS and the Yanks won the WC, but still.)
Hughes had a chat on his blog today, I found the part about his velocity particularly interesting:
http://bronx-bomberz.blogspot......-loss.html
I love Mo.
Rebecca: Is that you on Hughes’ blog under rebeccaoptimist?
I hate how you have to sign up for an account at Phils blog…
And I wish Joba had a blog, actually I wish they all had em, that would be sweet.
JBRO: You don’t really need any info it took me 2 secs
Awww. You mean Mo’s not in it for the money?
Big ups for the Baby Bombers! Seems like Mo has some inside information.
Bronx,
Thanks for the link to the link of the chat. That’s a big endorsement for Eiland. I can’t wait to see if he’s a positive influence on the whole pitching staff.
Mo’s going to forfeit 30Mil dollars and just retire? He’s not going to want to be the closer when the new stadium opens? I’ll believe it when I see it.
Jaewon: Yep
raymagnetic,
I don’t even want to think about salaries. There was an article about the Yankees spending a record $218 in ’07. I didn’t even click on it. I want to ignore the whole issue because it just sucks when you keep breaking your own record like that.
Mo will be in pinstripes in the new stadium…you can etch that in stone.
lol. $218M. The last time the Yankees spent $218 in a year was 1492.
i love mo but he has said each time he signed a contract that he would retire at the end of it. thank goodness he didnt go through with it.
Of course Mo is going to be at the new Yankee Stadium. Mo loves to tell a story, doncha know?
It’s nice to hear he has such a high opinion of the young guys, Melky included.
I really can’t wait for the season to start.
And now, to go to Phil’s blog….
So Octavio Dotel got signed?
For $11 million?
Sounds like a good deal to me.
How many years did they give him?
7? 8? 9?
Last night was such a great time, because Mariano is such a humble guy. The fact that he is the G.O.A.T at his position has not changed him. On that topic his quote was: “That is just what I do, not who I am.”
I love Mariano!
I can imagine the closing of a stadium that has hosted so many legendary players would affect players like Mo in a hard way. While I like what I see of the new stadium, even the revamped, re-modeled stadium lost some of what the original had. At least it was on the same hallowed grounds, the shell was there.
I had the opportunity to watch some great players prior to the 70′s at Yankee stadium, it was old, but you felt so on top of it there.
I tend to doubt that the new stadium will give the other teams and the players the same “fans are right on top of us” feel that the original and remodeled ones did. The second tier is too far back for that.
Mariano is my favorite Yankee (and I like a lot of ‘em) — career value, peak value, clutch value, leadership value, class value — what more can you want? The fitting final torch bearer for #42.
Maybe every young pitching stud should have to spend some time in the pen, for no other reason than sitting next to Mo and learning.
lol ranting guy…
Mariano is truly one of the great guys in the game today. I am glad that he is a Yankee.
What’s not to like about Mariano ? The young players gravitate toward him and his easy demeanor. The last guy in the game to ever have off field issues.
http://www.mosnewyorkgrill.com/
I wonder how good Mo’s food is.
My sn is yankeechick78
Off topic question
Does anyone know what font the Yankees Jersey numbers are?
Solid gold. The man is solid gold.
I shall shed a tear when, on day in the future, I walk into the new-fangled Monument Park and pass his plaque. It’s difficult to put into words the memories that man has given us already.
So the closer says stay put with the kids? I’m with Mo.
One more thing, Mo credited John Wetteland and Steve Howe with teaching him how to be a pro. The way these guys treated Mo is the reason he takes care of the young pitchers. Mo cracked up the room when he explained that when Wetteland got up, he got up and when Wetteland went to the bathroom he went to the bathroom.
The food at Mo’s was amazing. 4 of us went about 3 weeks ago and one entree was better than the next.
this is a little off topic…but check out this blog on NY vs Boston by Alex Dezen of The Damnwells…great blog by a great songwriter…
http://losangeles.broowaha.com/article.php?id=2970
mel,
I’m responding to a question you posed on the previous thread about “mixed” marriages and their survival rates. I’m an avid sports fan and have been a huge Yanks fan since I was a little girl. I’ve been married to a RS fan for 17 years. I guess it “works” for us because we have somewhat of a role reversal – I’m the sports nut and he’s a very casual fan. He’s the one asking me questions all the time about various sports topics (ex. what is a simulated game, etc.). It’s just as well – as much as I would love to be married to a sports nut, if he was as passionate about the RS as I am about the Yankees, well let’s just say we probably wouldn’t be married today!
Another off topic post…
I just made a Joba Wallpaper, I figured id share it with you guys
http://img155.imageshack.us/im.....permx9.jpg
I have a larger version for widescreens but cant find anywhere that hosts large images…
EDIT: Heres the Hi Res one…
http://s5.largeimagehost.com/d.....key=june23
The food in Mo’s place is quite good – NYC cost in New Rochelle, so it is a bit pricey for lower Westchester. But the quality is high. When Mo is there, he does come around to all the tables to say hello. He will shake hands, take pictures but will not sign autographs. He struck me as a very gracious and humble person.
I posted this video at the very end of a previous thread, so some of you might have missed it. If you have 4 minutes to spare, this video of a disgruntled Cowboys fan is pretty funny:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v.....ture=bz301
The food at Mo’s is fantastic (a little pricy)..plus ..I got to sit next to Joe Fosina …father of the Chef (co owner with Mo) and mentor to Mo when he came to the U.S. He lived with the Fosina’s and they are his second family. I was there after last year’s Old Timer’s Day and Joe told us many glorious stories of days gone by. He has been in charge of alterations of Yankee uniforms for over 30 years I believe and that’s how he met Mo. He gave Mo a ride when he first came up. At that time he gave Mo his number and said to call if he needed anything…Mo did ..the NEXT day. They became fast friends and more like family to Mo..right up till this day. It was a great dinner and learning some inside stuff about the Yankees from a gentleman who has seen it all. Unfortunately it wasn’t a night MO stopped by restaurant. If you ever get the chance to go ..please do and ask if you can see the back room with all the wonderful pictures of the Yankees past and present.
Bon Appetite !!!
I ate there about a monthe after it opened on one of my trips to NYC….The food is great and it’s a First Cabin Operation….The fare is high but it’s quality all the way to the Silverware….The halls and the back room is like walking through a mini Yankee Hall of Fame room……
Nick SF – that was a gas!
Rivera is a messenger of God. That’s why he says ‘it’s what I do, it’s not Who I Am.’ Get it? He has always spoken deceptively simply, but there is always a double meaning to his words. He actually consciously understands why he’s here on earth, while some of us vaguely know, or we strive to know, or we don’t ever even stop to consider our higher purpose. Rivera so gets it. Before you think I’m some religious fanatic, my signature will tell you that I’m spiritual, not religious (Rivera is clearly Christian, but he’s not the annoying kind; he actually upholds what Christ spoke about and what the medievalists twisted for their own gain, up to the present day). That is why Rivera is humble, he has been contacted by higher realms, so he doesn’t take all this so seriously, it also explains his unrelenting focus – meditators sit for hours trying to achieve that kind of Mindfulness. For Rivera, it comes without effort. This explains why he is so successful, such a ‘quiet tiger’ as one Yankee so aptly put it, and why he continues to get people out with one pitch: it’s truly a gift ‘from God’, and when Rivera says this, it’s really not like other guys babbling on about God in an endorphined euphoric haze after winning, he means it quite literally.
Ah, Mo should know about “the young guys developing into top-flight players”. He’s a product of the Yankees farm system himself!
Very well said Bodhi. I like your perspective.
“I love it when people say ‘I’m not religous, I’m spiritual.’ I like to reply ‘I’m not honest, but you’re interesting’”
- Daniel Tosh
Not calling out anyone’s belief system, here. Just a bit of humor.
Theresa,
Nice story. Nice to know that not every member of the nation is an axe murderer.
Thanks for the words about Mariano, you don’t see comments like this about him too often.
giambi’s sweat stain
allow me to make an important distinction:
religion is someone’s codified idea of God and God’s laws. Often, it is limiting and non-inclusive (see catholicism), and makes Divine Intelligence out to be a ‘big man in the sky’ shaking his fist at everyone. As medievalists understood, this is a great way to control society, and the forces of government, especially when your religion endows only a certain few with God’s trusted “laws” to dispense when they deem necessary (that would be the clergy, etc.).
spirituality is not so confined, and I regard it as a direct link the Source, without some silly, self-interested human arbiter. FTR, I never go to any organized mass, except the odd Christmas eve, belong to no religious ‘group’, and admire avatars like Christ, Buddha, Krishna, etc. without any strict adherence to the religions that grew up around them. Therefore, I define myself as spiritual, and not as religious.