For veterans who have seen Rivera’s cut fastball bore in on their hands if they are left-handed swingers, or scoot away from them if they stand in the right-handed batter’s box, the record is a true reflection of Rivera’s enduring dominance. For some, it highlights the view that as great as people say he has been, Rivera is actually underrated.

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“When you talk about the greatest pitchers of all time, people don’t think about relievers,” said Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira, who had one hit in nine at-bats against Rivera, “but I think we need to put Mo in that conversation of one of the greatest pitchers of all time.”

With a repertory that consists almost entirely of that one pitch, the cut fastball, Rivera has fashioned a Hall of Fame career even as he defied conventional wisdom about the tools a pitcher needs.

Eric Chavez, who broke into the American League with the Oakland Athletics in 1998, says that what Rivera has done with his one-dimensional approach may be among the greatest accomplishments in any aspect of the game.

“When you go back and look at his career and what he’s done with that one pitch, I don’t think there’s a greater achievement in this game than that,” Chavez said. “To go through major league hitters and dominate for all those years, it’s one of the greatest feats I’ll ever look back on. I honestly believe that, too. I don’t think people realize how incredible it really is. It will never be duplicated, ever.”

It probably will not happen among the current crop of established closers. The closest active closer to Rivera is Cincinnati’s Francisco Cordero, 36, who had 321 saves entering Saturday. Isringhausen comes next, followed by Milwaukee’s Francisco Rodriguez, 29, with 291. Even as they accumulate more, Rivera continues to add to his total. With 598 saves, the only person ahead of him is Trevor Hoffman, who retired after last season.

Hoffman limped across the finish line at age 42 with 10 saves and a 5.98 earned run average. Rivera had 39 saves this season, and a 2.13 E.R.A. at age 41.

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“I mean this in a good way,” Angels Manager Mike Scioscia said, “but he’s a freak. You don’t see people dominate the way he has for so long.

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“Of any relief pitcher in modern-day baseball, no one has had more of an impact on their club than Mariano has with the Yankees. And he’s showing no signs of slowing down.”

Rivera is by far the career leader in postseason saves with 42, including 11 in the World Series. Four of those came at the expense of a team with outfielder Torii Hunter, who was with the Minnesota Twins in 2003 and 2004, and the Angels in 2009.

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“Even now, hitters hate facing him,” Hunter said. “When you have a pitcher and hitters talk about him like he’s a ghost or a monster that they are afraid to see, that’s impressive. I definitely include him as one of the best pitchers of all time.”

Since earning his first save against the Angels on May 17, 1996, at Yankee Stadium — Garret Anderson hit into a game-ending double play for an 8-5 Yankees victory — Rivera has had an E.R.A. over 3.00 for a season only once, in 2007, when it was 3.15.

Through Friday, his career E.R.A., over 1,205 innings and 17 years, was 2.23, which sounds like something out of the dead-ball era. And Rivera has always retained the composure, humility and focus that have added to his aura of greatness.

“Right now, I’m concerned that we’ve lost three games in a row,” he said after Friday’s loss to the Angels. “So I’m not thinking about 600 at all. But when I get there, I’ll let you know how it feels.”