Mariano Rivera Receives Cowboy Hat, Custom Boots from the Texas Rangers
July 25, 2013 · Chris Stephens · Jump to comments
Article Source: Bleacher Report - New York Yankees
As the farewell tour continues for New York Yankees reliever Mariano Rivera, the Texas Rangers were the latest to send the closer off in style.
The cowboy hat joins a long list of items Rivera has received in his final year in uniform.
Just to name a few, the Minnesota Twins gave him a rocking chair made from broken bats, while the Oakland Athletics gave him a surfboard and a donation to his charitable foundation.
For Rivera, it’s humbling considering the way he’s carried himself throughout his career. If his speech during his All-Star MVP interview didn’t tell you, Rivera is touched by the outpouring of fan support for him.
But the gifts are only part of the farewell tour for Rivera. In typical Mariano fashion, he has given back in each city the Yankees have visited.
In Cleveland and Texas, he met with stadium workers to take pictures, sign autographs and answer questions. In Oakland, he delivered a pizza to a mail-room employee of 25 years. In Tampa Bay, he visited active-duty soldiers at the James A. Haley Veterans Hospital.
If that’s not classy, I don’t know what is.
Rivera is one of the classiest players in all of baseball and someone who the fans love (inside and outside New York). There’s a reason why even Boston Red Sox fans can cheer for him…unless the Red Sox are playing the Yankees.
His cutter will go down as one of the greatest strikeout pitches of all-time, while his Hall of Fame credentials are plain as day.
The cowboy hat is only a small token of appreciation from the Rangers.
Rivera has given so much to the game, and it’s only right that the game gives back to him.
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