Here is an excerpt from a recent article written by Jason Gay for the Wall Street Journal. It it, Gay shares his thoughts about one of the greatest baseball players ever…who also happens to be one of the most humble superstars ever: Mariano Rivera, the “closer” for the New York Yankees. He recently became the winningest relief pitcher in the history of Major League Baseball. For those with children or grandchildren in organized sports who are looking for a role model for them, this is a “must read.”

To read the complete article, please click here.

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In the aftermath of Mariano Rivera’s record 602nd save, there’s been a mostly amicable debate about Rivera’s position among baseball’s all-time greats. There’s a predictably strong New York consensus that Rivera is the greatest closer in history—that he near-perfected a specialty position; that he performed in pressurized situations in an intense town; that he’s still rolling elegantly at age 41. Some folks want to take it further and give Rivera a top-5 placing among Yankees all-time, or baseball pitching legends in general, and after a while, especially on sports radio, the discussion slips into pointless, arcane layers of awesomeness, and it begins to sound like people in a living room arguing about how spectacular a new 60-inch HDTV set is.

Rivera is spectacular. When he hangs up the spikes—at age 53 or so, at the rate he’s going—he will not be forgotten. It should be sufficient to leave it there. It’s like the R.E.M. fans arguing over the band’s historical place after Wednesday’s breakup news. R.E.M. recorded “Murmur” and “Reckoning.” That’s enough. (If you want to discuss “Fables of the Reconstruction” or “Lifes Rich Pageant” or the under-appreciated “New Adventures in Hi-Fi,” let’s do it on Twitter with the rest of the weirdos.)

Let’s move onto something else. Let’s talk about the 602 celebration. Rather, the 602 non-celebration.

It’s not as if Rivera didn’t know the significance of the moment. The build-up was there—maybe not the breathless, extended countdown of Derek Jeter’s 3,000, but everyone knew 602 was coming. Yankee Stadium roared when Rivera migrated to the bullpen to warm up.

You know what happens next. With two outs in the ninth, Rivera gets two quick strikes on Minnesota’s Chris Parmelee. Yankees not on the field gather on the top rail of the dugout. Rivera drops and delivers. Plate umpire John Hirschbeck does a jazz-hands punchout. Strike three. Backwards K. 602.

Then Rivera celebrates. Or doesn’t celebrate. There’s no fist pump, or heavenly gaze upward. He doesn’t drop to his knees or vindictively point to a luxury suite. Shoulders lowered, Rivera simply walks toward home plate. He looks like a guy walking down his driveway to retrieve the mail.

Catcher Russell Martin trots quietly to the mound, drops the ball in Rivera’s glove, and gives Rivera the kind of mannerly hug you give a cousin at a wake. Rivera pats Martin on the back. A smiling Mark Teixeira arrives. A-Rod’s next. Robinson Cano. Derek Jeter, grinning.

The whole scene resembles a bunch of office workers congratulating a co-worker on a promotion in the staff kitchen. It is astonishing in its dignity and restraint. Here are just a few things I’ve celebrated more vigorously than Mariano Rivera did his record-shattering 602nd save: Finding the mustard in the refrigerator. A good haircut. Successfully lobbing a cat food can into the recycling. An F train arriving on time. Connecting to the high-speed Internet in the airport.

I’m not anti-celebration. I don’t mind a little demonstrative swagger from a closer. I could care less if a wide receiver hands the ball to the referee or jumps into the stands, as those surprising 3-0 Buffalo Bills [in the NFL] are doing. These are games. Careers are short. Have fun while you can.

But there’s something about the way that Rivera just doesn’t get overexcited, his modesty, that embarrasses the rest of sports. We’ll remember that 602 anti-celebration the next time a hitter stands in the batter’s box admiring a third-inning solo homer, a football player makes an elaborate first-down motion after a six-yard completion, or a TV actor gushes over an Emmy like it’s a Nobel Prize.

In a city of narcissists and exhibitionists, Rivera thrives in humility. Here’s a fantastic Mariano Rivera fun fact: it appears he has a Twitter! Twitter.com/marianorivera follows two others: the New York Yankees, and Major League Baseball. And he hasn’t tweeted…once.

That fact alone is worthy of a celebration. Maybe even a fist pump. But this is Mariano. It’s not going to happen.