Love or hate the New York Yankees, you have to admit that Mariano Rivera is the greatest closer of all-time. Rivera, 42, was already putting together what could have been a swan song season to close out his career, as he’s recorded 5 saves in 6 chances, with a 1-1 record and 2.16 ERA. Instead, he could be going out more like a dying duck, as he’ll miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL.

Before yesterday’s 4-3 loss to the Kansas City Royals, Rivera was shagging fly batting practice balls in center field, like he usually does, and on a deep fly ball by Jayson Nix, Rivera turned awkwardly and twisted his knee (video after the jump). A lot of people might ask, “Why the hell was the 41-year old closer shagging fly balls in center field?” And the answer is: “Because Mo can apparently do whatever he wants.”

An outstanding athlete, Rivera fancies himself a credible center fielder, even pleading with Girardi to allow him to play center in a game before he retires. Girardi said he wanted to accommodate Rivera, but was too worried about an injury to let him go through with it.

Rivera has been a fixture in center field during batting practice, along with the other pitchers. But he always chased fly balls with more zeal and effort. (Via the New York Times)

And so begins a year of sports writers wondering if Rivera’s career is over, which we won’t know until he recovers, obviously. What we do know is that a guy like Rivera deserves better. If he’s going to blow out his knee, at least make it while he’s rescuing a basket of puppies from Skeletor. At least that’s how I’d like to go.

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… just not very good ones.

Less than two weeks after crashing through the final turn of the Indianapolis 500 (while in the lead), rookie IndyCar driver JR Hildebrand tore the ACL in his right knee while trying to clear hurdles during a promotional event. The final hurdle. If you need proof that God exists and has a sense of humor, watch this poor guy keep trudging through life with one leg and half a car.

From RacinToday.com (and that’s not a typo, it’s actuallly racin’, and I’m totally going to start a blog called RasslinToday.edu):

Hildebrand’s knee broke the top board upon contact, and the 23-year-old Californian stumbled to the ground on a grassy lot outside the Lone Star Tower condominiums.

Hildebrand remained on the ground for several minutes catching his breath, as the outside of his left knee appeared to swell. TMS public relations staffers provided Hildebrand with some cold towels and ice from a nearby cooler to wrap the knee. Hildebrand was able to stand and walk to a nearby SUV, which reportedly transported him to the track’s Infield Care Center.

To put this into perspective, here’s an excerpt from the hat tip article on From The Marbles:

Last year, NASCAR driver Denny Hamlin tore his left ACL playing pickup basketball. Hamlin attempted to hold off on having surgery until the end of the season but opted for surgery in the spring after the pain became too great. Hamlin finished second to Jimmie Johnson for the Sprint Cup championship.

So I guess he’ll be fine, he’ll just have to push the gas with his other foot.

Thanks to golden-voiced hobo sensation Ted Williams, the media has been locked in on vagrant diamonds in the rough. And while it doesn’t quite match the brilliance of sending a reporter out to make homeless people sing, AOL News recently discovered that Debbie Clark is homeless. If you’re like me, you’re fluent in every romantic language, but you also just asked, “Who is Debbie Clark?” She was Storm on “American Gladiators” from 1991-93 and an Olympic handball competitor. And don’t say, “Ohhhh…” because you didn’t know that.

Storm has been homeless in San Diego for over 2 years, after she left South Carolina due to a situation of domestic violence. She describes how things were great during her 3-year run on the original “Gladiators”, as she made $1,500 per episode and rubbed elbows with celebrities. But that all came to an end when she blew out her ACL and she never recovered properly…

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