Closing chapter?

May 4, 2012

It was one of my dad's mantras. And it was the line he always pulled out when I whined that "it's not fair."

I thought of the line today, in light of the it's-just-no-fair video of Yankees pitcher Mariano Rivera crumpling in a heap after hurting his leg.

A torn ACL - anterior cruciate ligament - plus some meniscus damage. That's the injury - sustained as Rivera was shagging fly balls in the outfield during batting practice before the Yankees game in Kansas City last night.

He always did this, as a way to warm up and because, apparently, he always dreamed of playing center field for the Yanks.

Imagine, the fantasy of the best relief pitcher in history is to play center field!

Anyway, for anyone who has had knee problems - and I've had 5 surgeries (I don't say that proudly, but pathetically) - and who saw Rivera fall last night, the initial claims of "twisted knee" seemed a bit twisted.

No way. That was my initial thinking when I saw the pain on his face. No way was that a twisted knee. He ripped something. Been there, done that.

Rivera was already talking about this being his last season. And now number 42, at age 42, might be having his last season cut short. Way short.

It's just not fair, referee's whistle or not.

Rivera late this afternoon - seemingly undaunted by his injury - telling reporters that, "I'm coming back. Write it down in big letters. I'm not going out like this."

We'll have the latest on Rivera's condition, and reaction, tonight at 11.

Also at 11, reaction as well to the death of Adam Yauch, otherwise known as rapper MCA of the "Beastie Boys." Yauch was just 47 and had been battling cancer of the parotid gland. He was a multi-talented young man, and social media is filled with tributes.

New York City's 9-1-1 system coming under fire tonight with the release of a consultant's report that the Bloomberg Administration tried hard to keep from the public. It shows a 9-1-1 system so beset by problems - it's a life-threatening situation. It also shows the NYPD and the FDNY aren't working together to make sure that they'd be able to communicate during a mass crisis, like a terrorist attack. We'll have the latest tonight at 11.

And we take a closer look at the most effective ways to ease your allergies - a huge problem for so many people.

We'll also have any breaking news of the night, plus Meteorologist Lee Goldberg's weekend AccuWeather forecast, and Rob Powers with the night's sports. I hope you can join Sade Baderinwa and me, tonight at 11.

BILL RITTER

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