^[2]The Yankees have been coy about what’s happening this morning. There’s been a few sly smiles and a few knowing looks, but the Yankees have not publicly acknowledged the obvious.

“There’s a press conference?” Andy Pettitte asked. “Is it for Mariano Rivera? If there’s a press conference for Mariano Rivera, I’ll probably be there.”

“He might be announcing an extension, who knows?” Derek Jeter said.

Barring an overnight change of heart, Mariano Rivera is expected to announce this morning that this will be his final season. It’s his own personal ninth inning. He is the game’s greatest closer, the gold standard at the end of games, and this will be his 19th season in New York pinstripes.

Rivera’s legacy is secure. The cutter. The No. 42 jersey. The record number of saves. The unthinkable postseason numbers. There’s nothing left for Rivera to prove, and at 10 a.m., he’ll take a different kind of center stage to make his decision official. YES Network will broadcast the press conference.

“Whatever is out there, it’s speculation until I talk to you guys,” Rivera said.

He’ll speak in a few hours. We’ll certainly be listening.

Associated Press photo