NEW YORK - He sang, wept and prayed Tuesday afternoon at a funeral service in Panama for two family members who died in an accident at his own home.
He cried again on the long plane ride back, unhappy he had to leave his family at such a time of need but knowing his team, his professional family, was waiting and counting on him.
And then at the end he managed to do what he always seems to do, which is to come through, getting the final four outs in Tuesday's series-opening win to bring joy to the Yankees world.
"It was tough to leave my family there; what kept me going were the prayers," he said. "I came here, and the fans and my teammates treated me like a king. That was something special, and I appreciate that. I'm exhausted and tired, but my mind kept going. My fans and my teammates helped me big time and made this happen."
Yankees manager Joe Torre, however, said Rivera deserves the credit.
Rivera left Panama after the midday funeral, flew nearly five hours back to New York on a private jet and arrived at the stadium shortly before 9 p.m. as the game was in the third inning.
He told pitching coach Mel Stottlemyre he was ready, willing and eager to pitch, and when he went to the bullpen in the fifth he was greeted with a roar from the crowd and hugs from teammates.
"He's special, there's no question," Torre said. "I don't think I trust anybody more than I trust Mariano. When he tells you he's okay, he's okay. And sometimes in situations like this, with everything he's been through and his wife, Clara, has been through the last few days, being back in uniform and out there, maybe it's a chance for him to hide for an hour or so."
How, Rivera was asked, can one man do so much in one day?
"That's who I am," he said. "The blessing and prayers of being a man of God keep me humble. That's what I believe, and when you believe in God I think you can do anything you want, and that kept me going."
Victor Dario Avila, a cousin of Rivera's wife, and Avila's 14-year-old son were electrocuted in the pool of Rivera's home Saturday afternoon. Rivera was told of the incident after the division series clinching win at Minnesota and traveled to his homeland Sunday.
