After a rocky start to the season, Mariano Rivera has made it clear he’s still the same old Hall of Fame closer.
Rivera worked a perfect ninth inning in the Yankees’ 2-1 victory over the Tigers yesterday for his 25th save, making him the second closer to reach that plateau in 13 straight seasons. Lee Smith is the other.
Rivera might have raised some eyebrows by allowing five homers in the season’s first six weeks, but he has suffocated opponents since. He has now gone 12 straight appearances without allowing a run. His only blown save came on April 24 at Boston.
“We were a little bit concerned going into the season, because he was coming off surgery,” manager Joe Girardi said. “There were some concerns because his fastball was 89-90 [mph], but now it’s 92-93. For me, he’s been great.”
Rivera said he’s “fatigued” physically, but said his arm feels fine. He said the talk earlier this season that he had declined didn’t bother him.
“I don’t think you can judge somebody within one week or month,” Rivera said. “The season is so long.”
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Girardi said Johnny Damon nearly was scratched from the lineup because of back stiffness. Damon was “banged up” from sliding on the basepaths Friday night. For the second straight game, Damon was removed in the late innings — yesterday Brett Gardner played left field in the ninth inning. Damon finished 1-for-4 with a double.
“It’s important that we keep him strong, because we really need him,” Girardi said.
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Alex Rodriguez‘s seventh-inning homer was No. 571 for his career, leaving him two short of Harmon Killebrew for ninth place on the all-time list. Rodriguez has homered in four of his past eight games at the Stadium.
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Lefty reliever Damaso Marte made a second rehab appearance for the Gulf Coast League Yankees and fired a scoreless inning. Marte struck out two and did not allow a hit or walk.
mpuma@nypost.com