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| Mariano rivera yankees party |
Shortly after all the VIPs — including Jackie Robinson's widow, Rachel, and daughter, Sharon, and some of Rivera's former teammates, including Jorge Posada, Bernie Williams, David Cone and former manager Joe Torre — were introduced and took their places on chairs in front of the Stadium pitching mound, Metallica cranked the opening chords of the song's ominous guitar riff. Lead singer James Hetfield gave a shout-out to Rivera, "This one's for you Mariano," before barking the song's famous first line, "Say your prayers little one..."
After weeks of speculation about whether the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame heavy metal band would perform in the Bronx Sunday, the buzz became louder when Metallica performed at the legendary Apollo in Harlem Saturday night. After Friday's win against the Giants, the Yankees announced that Monument Park in center field would be closed to fans Sunday. Twenty-four hours later, giant rock concert speakers were being set up in center field after Saturday's 6-0 win. In addition to the Apollo concert Saturday night, the band is in New York this week in conjunction with the release of the film, "Metallica Through the Never."
It was a lavish one-song tribute, and Rivera walked out from his customary spot in the bullpen while the band rocked on a mini stage behind him. During the presentation of several gifts to Rivera, the Metallica band members hauled out a giant speaker from the home dugout with Rivera's No. 42, the name Metallica, and "Sandman" on the front. It was signed by the band's members as well — Hetfield, drummer Lars Ulrich, guitarist Kirk Hammett and basist Robert Trujillo.
Since 1999, Rivera has jogged out of center field during home games to the thunderous "Enter Sandman," and an iconic sequence has played out at both the old and new Yankee Stadium ever since. Rivera became the greatest pitchman the band could probably ever ask for, and Hetfield thanked Rivera at the end of Sunday's performance, while the sold-out crowd exploded with cheers.
