The Song Remains the Same With Rivera

When it comes to bullpen pitchers, most are short-lived. Their performance will fluctuate from year-to-year, and even the best relief pitchers, closers, cannot consistently lock down games.

Mariano Rivera is different.

Mariano Rivera has been a model of consistency for the past decade-and-a-half. Last season was no different. At forty-one years of age, he had one of the best seasons of his illustrious career. Rivera posted a stingy 1.91 ERA and 0.897 WHIP en route to his 12th All-Star appearance. His control was pinpoint as usual, walking only 8 batters in 61.1 innings, leading to his staggering 7.5 K/BB ratio.

On September 13th of last season in Seattle, Rivera enjoyed the 600-save milestone that only Trevor Hoffman had previously reached. Six days and two saves later, Mo broke Hoffman's all-time saves record by notching his 602nd career save against the Twins at the Stadium. The save was Mariano-esque (he pitched a perfect ninth-inning), as was the humble reaction. Saves certainly are not a great measuring stick for closer success, but it does speak for Rivera's longevity.

There is no reason to expect anything less than the typical Rivera in 2012. Every game he appears in at Yankee Stadium, he will jog in to Metallica's Enter Sandman. The raucous crowd will bellow its chorus while Rivera takes his warm-up pitches. The rest can be predicted fairly easily. Soon thereafter, the final out of the game is recorded, typically from a strikeout looking on a two-seamer on the black, or a dribbler back to the slick-fielding Rivera. As New York, New York is blasted on the stadium's speakers, Rivera does not perform any antics. He simply takes the ball with which he recorded the final out, high-fives his Yankee teammates, and steps on second base before returning to the clubhouse.

On the road, the scene is much less enthusiastic, but it typically ends with the same result.

And in 2012, just as it has happened during each recent season, there will be a stretch lasting about a week in which Rivera is just as vulnerable, just as human as everyone else. There will still be the critics that claim that Mariano can't pitch anymore, that he's getting too old. And just as always, Sandman will resurrect and find his way back to his typical near-perfection.

Rivera has been reliably stellar since he was the setup man to John Wetteland in 1996. The same flawless performance can be expected of Rivera, who turned 42 in November. In a game that is imperfect by design, Mariano Rivera is as close to perfect as they come.