Mariano Rivera will be back on the mound after a knee injury forced him to miss most of the 2012 season.
But Rivera's return to baseball will likely be a brief one: the Yankees have scheduled a press conference for Saturday, where Rivera is expected to announce his retirement at the end of this year.
Rivera, 43, is widely considered one of the greatest closers of all time. He has spent his entire career in New York, signing with the Yankees organization in 1990 and making his debut as a starting pitcher in 1995.
Rivera's career began to take off when, in 1996, he began pitching relief, ultimately landing the coveted role as closer. He has been selected as an All Star 12 times, helped the Yankees win five World Series championships, and earned more than 600 saves over his 19 years in baseball.
Before his injury on May 3, Rivera had been hinting 2012 would be his final season. But after successful surgery to in June to repair his ACL, Rivera announced he would return for at least one more year.
"I'm not going down like this," Rivera said of his decision.
According to the New York Times Bats blog, the Yankees are preparing to give Rivera the sendoff his storied career deserves. But, given his history of planning retirement only to reverse course later, the team is leaving open the possibility he'll change his mind yet again.
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