New York Yankees' pitching legend Mariano Rivera has joined forces with LED (light emitting diode) company, Evolucia Inc. to create a one-of-a-kind LED baseball.

Baseball great Mariano Rivera ready to "pitch" his one-of-a-kind commemorative LED Light Up baseball developed by Evolucia.  (PRNewsFoto/Evolucia Inc.)

With a Major League career 652 saves -- the most all time -- Rivera is famous for his bat-breaking pitch called "the cutter."  Now preparing to retire from baseball, Rivera says he wanted his commemorative baseball to send a message to fans throughout the U.S. and in Latin America: "we can cut energy consumption, reduce pollution and save money by switching to LED lights."

Rivera challenged Sarasota-based Evolucia Inc. to come up with a regulation-sized baseball that would feature the company's LED lights. Rivera is also a stakeholder in the company.

Evolucia and Mariano developed the baseball to highlight Rivera's career and to encourage energy efficiency. The LED baseball features Evolucia's high performance LED light sources. (PRNewsFoto/Evolucia Inc.)

Guided by CEO Mel Interiano, the company developed an innovative LED-lighted baseball that is the same size and weight as a regulation Major League baseball (9" circumference weighing 138-142 grams). The ball leaves a trail of light as it is thrown, and is powered by a rechargeable battery. The commemorative baseball will go on sale Friday September 20th with a portion of the proceeds benefitting Rivera's charitable foundation.

Rivera, who once told the MLB Network that he grew up in Panama playing with a baseball made of balled-up fabric wrapped in tape, wants to encourage people in the United States and his native Central America to convert to LED lighting technology.

"This is the REAL 'cutter,'" Rivera said of Evolucia's LED lighting products. "By switching to LED lights, we can all cut our electricity bills by 60 to 80 percent. That's important to people here in the United States, and it's vital to those in Panama."

Together with former Red Sox and Mets pitcher Pedro Martinez, a native of the Dominican Republic, Rivera hopes to encourage both Latin American countries to update their lighting systems using the more efficient Evolucia technology. Evolucia is retrofitting his church in New Rochelle, New York, with energy-efficient LED lighting solution, which Rivera says will be the center of his post-retirement life.

For Interiano, the chance to help Rivera commemorate his career was "a dream come true. For 19 years, Mariano Rivera has been an essential part of the Yankees' roster, an incredible asset to his team and much-beloved figure in sports. We are honored to play a part in celebrating one of the greatest pitchers of all time."