Rivera - Delivery Man of the Year

Rivera - Delivery Man of the Year

Pat Dean - Cable Muse Network Reporter

By Pat Dean for Sport Shorts on CMN

October 15, 2009 – (Cable Muse Network) -- Mariano Rivera has won Major League Baseball’s Delivery Man of the Year award for the third time. The award recognizes the most outstanding relief pitcher of the regular season as voted on by a panel from Major League Baseball.

Mariano Rivera (CMN) Sport Shorts

Rivera, who entered the season at the age of 39, had won the Delivery Man of the Year award twice- after the 2005 campaign, when he had 43 saves in 47 save opportunities, and 2006 when he converted 34 saves in 37 save opportunities.

The 10 time A.L. ALL-Star went 3-3 with a 1.76 ERA and converted 44 of his 46 save opportunities in 2009, finishing the season second in the Majors with a 95.7 percent save percentage. In 66.1 innings pitched, Rivera permitted 48 hits and 12 walks with 72 strikeouts while holding opposing hitters to a .197 batting average. He helped lead the New York Yankees to the best record in Major League Baseball and a sweep of the Minnesota Twins in the first round of the playoffs.

Since recording blown saves in his first two chances in 2007, Mariano has converted 113 of 118 save opportunities (95.8 percent), the best ratio in the Majors over that span. Mariano, whose 526 career saves ranks second all-time behind Milwaukee's Trevor Hoffman (591), reached the 40-save plateau for the seventh time in his career, second-most all-time behind Hoffman's nine.

The award was developed in 2005, as part of a sponsorship agreement between Major League Baseball and package delivery company DHL Express. Previous winners have included Jonathan Papelbon of the Boston red Sox in 2007 and Brad Lidge of the Philadelphia Phillies last season.

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