Today, the most dominant closer in the history of the game and a Yankees legend in Mariano Rivera will be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown.
And it's been a long week for Rivera leading up to this moment, something that he said sunk in over the last few months since he became the first player ever to be unanimously voted into the hall.
Rivera spoke briefly with the media on Saturday, reflecting on his journey to this point in his life. He admitted that while he was shutting teams down left and right for years, he didn't really think he would be at this point getting inducted. In fact, he didn't even think about All-Star games during his playing days.
"When the career was done, at that point I said, 'Well, [you] might have a chance to Cooperstown,' " Rivera told the media. "We'll see what happens, and I end up here.
"I never thought like that. I never even thought that I would make All-Star teams. I didn't play for those type of things. I played to win championships and that's what I was focused on. The rest was just a blessing from the lord."
Rivera also spoke about what it was like to represent the pinstripes every night...