Nothing like topping off a Yankees win with a patented Rivera broken bat dribbler to Jeter. I will miss him when he calls it a career. Not that that's happening anytime soon, hopefully.

He's amazing. I tried to explain it to my wife this weekend when she was watching the game, but I just couldn't come up with the words.

He's off the charts. So good that he's a cliche. I see him do things like he did to the Sox, and I just think to myself "How lucky are we to be witnessing this Hall of Fame pitcher."

Man oh man.

I really consider myself lucky that I've been able to witness his career from the beginning. When it comes to pitching, he's one of the all time greats.

I know this is not the subject, but I have to share this gem with everyone. On the Saturday night game, the two Angels broadcasters (who are probably the worst in the business) were interviewing a pitcher that the Angels signed recently from the draft, he was actually the grandson of Bozo the clown. The question by one of the announcers "how was it like growing up with your grandfather being Bozo the clown and by the way How's he doing?" the answer "well he actually passed away in 1997, but that's quite all right"..."Oh, I didn't know..."

Some might argue that its Jeter, but I think its actually Mo. He's the one Yankee who's been truly dominant compared to his peers. No other reliever in baseball is like our Mo.

Someday, we'll be telling our kids and grandkids what it was like to watch Rivera pitch, just like we heard from our parents and grandparents what it was like to watch Mantle play. And how privileged we felt to watch him work his magic, time and time again.

Thanks, Mariano.

I will forever look at that pitching performance as Mo's "signature" performance of his career.

How can he do this? This is one extraordinary pitcher.

As far as the Yankees go, I think Jeter is a better fit than Rivera. Not that Jeter is the superior player, but he's more well-known than Rivera. I think Mo is the symbol of the Yankee dynasty, and agree, that he's probably the key player in this run. A few years ago, Rob Neyer ran a column about Jeter as a clutch player. He showed Jeter and Bernie's AVG/OBP/SLG numbers for the post-season vs. the regular season and both sets of numbers were comperable. The real "clutch" Yankee was Rivera, whose post-season numbers dwarfed what he accomplished during the regular season.

I saw that "Mantle" documentary and was thinking a lot about Jeter. Jeter was not the kind of natural force that Mantle was. He was not the guy who was born and God made a ball player. They are very different. But I think that Jeter is the signature player on Torre's Yankees in the way that Mantle was on Stengal's teams.

I think that Jeter is a sex symbol and a celebrity in the way that Mantle was. Jeter is not a natural in his own way too. That he came to his talent through hard-work and his competitive nature, instead of natural ability, just makes him different. Jeter is the anti-Mantle in a way. He was from out-of-town but wasn't a hick. Instead, he was probably one of the shrewdest young stars New York has ever seen. This this point, he's done nothing but capitalize on his opportunities. He is consciously bland with the media, but has never gotten involved in any trouble.

People loved Mantle because he was a pretty hick, with a great name, amazing talent, and an aw shucks personality. They were willing to forgive him if he got drunk at the Copa and acted like an ass. He played hurt, had to replace a legend in DiMaggio, and was the perfect kind of baseball God for his time.

Jeter is a bit more like DiMaggio in some ways, though I wouldn't go too far in that comparison. The thing of it is, Jeter isn't insecure, and unsure of himself and his celebrity in the same way Mantle was. He is a very well adjusted guy.

The other thing about Jeter is, for us Yankee fans who watch him every day, it doesn't matter how boring and dull he is with the media, we see him on the field and catch glimpses of him in the dugout. If you can find a player who genuinely enjoys playing the game, who loves competition more than Jeter, then let me know. Really I think that will be his legacy for me. I've never seen a guy actually have so much fun out there. And not in a half-ass, flakey way. He's a bonafide gamer--not too tense in the seventh game of the World Series or too relaxed in a mid-August blow-out. Though he's got a game face, and is intense about winning, rarely does a game pass when you don't see him smirking or laughing--enjoying the ride. What makes him the anti-Mantle is you get the sense that Jeter is appreciating everything that is happening to him right now. He won't have to wait until it is over. He's into it. He's in the moment, he's right now. And I think that is what makes him the Yankee legend that is most like Mantle.

Rivera is great, but he's other-wordly. There is an almost mythical sense of calm about him. He's a freak. You can't explain him. Jeter, you can touch. He allows you to enjoy the ride with him if you want.

As far as Rivera, how did Womack hit that freaking double? That inning is really his only true blemish that I can recall in the postseason that cost us a game, and the Roberts steal-inning last year. With better defensive plays, he might not even have those on his record, but that's baseball. Rivera has been a Godsend, I still remember him making a start very early in his career and him striking out White Sox left and right.

Jetes is simply a fine human being. The way he plays the game and handles himself makes him a true role model for everyone who knows him. I want to meet his parents and shake their hands.

Althought I have seen few Yankees games, I was lucky enough to see Mickey hit his 500th. While Mo is amazing and Jetes is a hero, for those in my generation, Mantle was a God. He transcended baseball. I loved him, as did many, many people. I do not think that any individual, in any sport, will even have the mass adulation and love that Mickey had.

I still get the tingles when I think of him.
You can not compare Mantle to other players. He was simply 'the Mic'.

Schilling loses another. Yea!!!!

Michael Jordan comes awfully close, doesn't he?

"Rivera is great, but he's other-wordly. . . . He's a freak. You can't explain him." I'm too young (27) to have watched Mantle play in person, but when I hear him described by those who did, those are the words that come to mind, other-worldly and can't explain him. I know they all say he was "one of the guys", but from our perspective now, he's a mythic legend - you almost can't believe the stories of what he did, and there are so many of those stories.

Jeter is certainly the face of the Torre Yankees, and has done some unbelievable things (the shovel pass comes to mind). But the mythic legend on these Yanks is Mariano, who's done the otherworldly over and over and over again - and comes back to do it once more, whether he succeeds OR fails. And then keeps doing it - all with just one pitch, really - and that makes it all the more unexplainable. That's God-given talent, something Mantle also had in spades.

This has been a pretty good discussion - I'm glad we could all have it.