Which baseball player still wears number 42 all the time?

Jackie Robinson was the first African American player on a modern Major League Baseball team. Read about him and his legacy in “Finding 42” on pages 26 and 27 in the February issue.

In honor of Robinson, the jersey number 42 was retired from all Major League teams on April 15, 1997. This meant that no new player could be assigned that number. At the time, several players were already wearing number 42 on a regular basis. Those players were allowed to continue to wear number 42 until the end of their careers. Today, only one of those players is still on a Major League team, and that’s Mariano Rivera.

Rivera is the all-star closing pitcher for the New York Yankees. He has worn number 42 since his rookie season in 1995, and he considers it a privilege. “The legacy that Jackie left for us, especially as a minority player like me, being the last one to wear number 42 is an honor, and I do carry it with honor,” Rivera said. “I’m blessed.”