Today in Sports History: March 11th

It was on this day in 2002 that the New York Yankees released Ruben Rivera from his contract. Ruben, the younger cousin of Yankees closer Mariano Rivera, was a major prospect who never quite panned out. After eight years in the big leagues, he finished his career with a lifetime batting average of just .216.

You may be wondering what’s so interesting about a so-so baseball player getting the axe. As it turned out, Rivera was released because he had stolen the glove and bat of Yankees star Derek Jeter and sold them to a memorabilia store for $2,500. The Yankees confronted him when they found out, and Rivera was able to give Jeter back his equipment. It mattered not and the Yankees bought out his $1 million contract, leaving him with just a $200,000 settlement.

“Everyone makes mistakes. I haven’t killed anybody,” River said. “It was just a moment when I wasn’t thinking right. I’ve repented. I gave it all back to him the next day. It wasn’t correct what I was doing.”