It was spring training of 1996, and Lou Piniella had to feel like he was on top of the basebalļ·ŗl world.
His Mariners were coming off an industry-shaking run to the American League Champiš¼onship Series, one in which they had eliminated the Yankees and Louās old Boss, George Steinbrenner, by climbing out of an 0-2 hole in the AL Division Series. Their success had even prodded the Washington State Legislature to authorize public funding for a new ballpark so they could escape the dank Kingdome, and the club had three mega-stars in Ken Griffey, Jr., Randy Johnson and Alex Rodriguez.
Just think how higher he could have climbed had one more item, a seemingly small ošøne at the time, gone right.
āThe general managerą± , Woody Woodward, called,ā Piniella said in a recent interview. āHe said he was working on a deal with the Yankees. He mentioned a few prospects, including Mariano. It never materialized.ā
Itās the ultimate baseball āWhat if ā¦ā of the past 19 years, the entirety of Riveraās big-league career: What if the ā96 Yankees, concerned about the underwhelming Grapefruit League showing of their rookie shortstop Derekį£ Jeter, had pulled the trigger and dealt Rivera, at the time a 26-year-old late bloomer with a live arm, to the Mariners for stopgap shortstop Felix Fermin?
āI donāt tšhink like that,ā Rivera said. āI donāt wonder about what might have happened. Itās not real.ā
No surprise there. Rivera thrives by keeping thš¼ings simple. For the rest of us, though, itās exactly the sort of hypothšetical we love discussing.
The Yankeesā brain trust at the time, featuring assistant general manager Brian Cashman, former general manager Gene Michaelš®, third-base coach Willie Randolph, manager Joe Torre and general manager Bob Watson, talked Steinbrenner out of the deal ā more out of their insistence Jeter get a chance than any vision about Rivera would do.
So the deal would have been a double-whammy. Not only would Riveraā± have been jettisoned, but Fermin, who slashed .195/.232/.235 for the ā95 Mariners, would have taken away playing time from the profoundly superior Jeter.
(Interestingly, the Mariners wound up releasing Fermin on April 1š3, 1996, and he signed with ā¦ the Yankees, who assigned him to their Triple-A Columbus affiliate. He played there for seven games before getting released again, and he finished his professioną·“al career that season with the Cubs.)
While Jeter justified his front officeās faith by winning AL Rookie of the Year honors, Rivera shockingly drew AL Cy Young Award consideration by putting together a spectacular campaign as John Wettelandās setup man, striking out 130 and walking 34 in 61 appearances totaling 107Ā²/ā innings. The Yankees then allowed Wetteland to go to Texas as a free agent so they could promote Rivera to closer, and you know the restš§.
Without Rivera and with Fermin as their Opening Day shortstop, the šøYankees probably wouldnāt have won the World Series in 1996. Down the road, however, you have to figure Jeter eventually would have worked his way up to the everyday shortstop job. Heās a pretty tough dude, and Fermin stunk.
And in the bullpen? Well, Rivera is one of a kind, but there have been plenty of other relieveš rs who contributed to champią²onships.
Letās say that, instead of five titles from 1996 through 2009, the Yankees would have won three. The 1998, 1999 and 2009 teams were so deep and so strong in all facets that they probably coulād have gotten by with an inferior closer.
What about Rivera? Would he have established šhšimself as an elite closer with the Mariners, who endured bullpen problems during many of Piniellaās 10 seasons in the Pacific Northwest?
Letās say that Seattle, which has yet to reach a World Series, would have one title on its rĆ©sumĆ© had the trade gone through. In 2000, the Mariners fell to theš§ Yankees in six games in the ALCS. Those Yšankees probably wouldnāt have even qualified for the playoffs without Rivera. With Rivera, Seattle would have won the whole thing.
Separately, the pitcher and his original team could have thrived. Together, however, they crź§eated an all-time legacy.
āThe best thing that hapšpened to the Yankees and Mariaš“no both was that he stayed in New York,ā Piniella said. āI think he wouldāve had a great career no matter where he played. But at the same time, playing in New York, being successful in New York, being great in New York, that really enhances your career.ā
The Yankees and Rivera are thankful this is nothing more than a fun cšonversation, and Piniella is left to wonder how differently he and his former employers would bš¬e viewed had The Boss not come to his senses on Jeter.
Which means that, in this close call concerning the gameās bestš °-š„ever closer, we should credit Jeter with the save.