Quote:
Originally Posted by packs
If you watched Mariano's career and all you took away from it was a number of saves, I am sincerely sorry you missed out on so much more. The if and but argument over what other teams he might have played for misses out entirely on the fact that on the biggest stage in the game for the biggest team in the game he excelled to a degree that made him the greatest of all time. How can you discount something like that? Do you think it could have been just anyone out there?
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As I said, Mariano was arguably the best closer of all time. I saw his entire career and he was phenomenal and well deserving of the Hall. I do think that who you play for does affect how you are regarded and being on a dynastic team allowed him to excel and show off his talent in ways that, had he been on a lesser team, wouldn't have happened. Throughout Hank Aaron's career, and I remember this well, up until the very late 1960s, he was extremely underrated, never garnering the fame or popularity of Mays or Mantle, despite racking up dominant numbers season after season. The difference? They were, in some ways, flashier and more importantly, they were in New York City, Aaron was in Milwaukee. Rivera also benefits from the Big Stage that is New York City and a legendary franchise like the Yankees.