Why does rivera get to wear 42

Being the last player for us to wear No. The team held a press conference to announce the signing and Jackson was presented with his first set of pinstripes—featuring uniform number The upshot is that Reggie's number 9 that he had worn in Oakland and Baltimore was already being worn by third baseman Graig Nettles—hence the need for a new number. Speculation has centered around manager Billy Martin wanting 42 for his pitching coach and long-time drinking buddy Art Fowler, but Fowler didn't join the Yankees until the middle of August of that year—Fowler did take number 42 when did get there.

Whatever his reason for not taking the then-available 42, Jackson chose 20 as his number in honor of Frank Robinson. He wore 20 for a very short while in Spring Training, then switched to 44 in tribute to the just-retired home run king, Hank Aaron.

Said Rivera: "It was a beautiful, long career with the best organization there is in baseball, the New York Yankees. Watch Now:. Rivera reflects on Robinson's No. How secure is Manfred's job as lockout looms? Dayn Perry 7 min read. Top offseason question for each team Mike Axisa 19 min read.

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