The Faith of Mariano Rivera

The Hammer of God Heads to Cooperstown

Since 1936, 323 players, managers, executives and umpires have been elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. What they all have in common is that none of them, not even Babe Ruth, Willie Mays, or Joe DiMaggio, was elected unanimously.

On Tuesday, January 22, 2019, that changed. Pitcher Mariano Rivera of the New York Yankees became the first player elected unanimously to the Baseball Hall of Fame. It's a fitting tribute to the man Esquire magazine dubbed "the Hammer of God," for his achievements on the mound.

Now even if you don't like baseball, you should rejoice with Rivera and his family, because while he may have been God's "hammer" on the field, he was and...