It's a loss that's not only bad for New York Yankees fans but for all of Major League Baseball as well. The game's most storied closer in its history was already on the verge of retirement, but now his 2012 season has been lost with the news that Mariano Rivera tore a knee ligament right before the team's series against the Kansas City Royals was set to begin last night.
The injury took place as the team was practicing on the field before the Royals' return home from a recent road trip. Rivera was shagging balls when he tripped on the place where the dirt and grass meet in the outfield. He went down immediately although Rivera later said he didn't realize the extent of the injury.
"I thought it wasn't that bad, but it's torn," Rivera said after the Yankees lost 4-3, pausing several times in the Yankees clubhouse to compose himself. "Have to fix it."
When commenting on rehab and potentially coming back, Rivera had no immediate answers.
At this point, I don't know," he said. "At this point, I don't know. Going to have to face this first. It all depends on how the rehab is going to happen, and from there, we'll see."
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