No regrets over Mark’s goodbye
may have to compete for first-base job
THIS wasn’t a signing or a contract the Yankees ever have had real reason to regret, even if age inevitably took its toll on the deal’s back end. It was eight years and $180 million to Mark Teixeira in December of 2008 and 10 months later the first baseman and his teammates were commemorating the Yankees’ first season in the new Stadium with the club’s first (and still only) World Series championship since 2000. “I don’t think it’s a coincidence that he showed up in 2009 with a couple of [other] free agents and we won the World Series,” Joe Girardi, the manager then and now, said before Friday’s 13-7 victory over the Indians in The Bronx. “I don’t.” The couple of other prominent free agents were CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett, and they also had more than a little something to do with Championship No. 27. But the case certainly can be made that Teixeira was the best player on the Yankees’ best team of the past 16 years, compiling a .292/ .383/.565 slash line with a .948 OPS and a league-leading 39 homers and 122 RBI. And that doesn’t take into account world-class defense that provided a dramatic differentiation from his predecessor at the bag, Jason Giambi. “That year was a whirlwind, it really was,” an emotional Teixeira said at the pregame press conference at which he announced his retirement effective at the end of the season. “It was a new place, new stadium and then when we won it was like, ‘ The Yankees win the World Series all the time, we’ll probably win three or four more.’ “I didn’t appreciate it at the time,” the 36-year-old said. “The ’ 09 season was special. It was magical.” The magic has run its course on the other side of 161st Street. The old way became the very old way. And it no longer translated into automatic playoff qualification, much less World Series championships.
“Looking back at that championship, I appreciate it much more,” Teixeira said. “Because I know how difficult it is.”
It became nearly impossible for Teixeira to stay on the field. There was a hamstring injury in the 2010 ALCS; a left calf injury in 2012; a torn right wrist sheath that wiped out 2013; a hamstring in 2014; a right shin bone bruise and fractured left shin last year; and neck and knee issues that have undermined his performance this year.
“I realize my body can’t do it anymore,” Teixeira said. “It is time to step away.”
But not for another seven weeks. On the first night of the definitive rest of his career, Teixeira was 2-for-4 with a double while scoring two runs to elevate his average to .202 and OPS to .638. He looked like a man unburdened.
“I’ve been carrying this around with me for a couple of weeks but hadn’t been able to say anything, so I do feel there is a weight off my chest,” Teixeira said. “This was a fun game for me.
“Some of the Indians and the umpires came over to me at first base and told me they’d appreciated what I’d done throughout my career, and that obviously felt good. And the way the fans reacted, the ovation I got, that was great.”
The Yankees engaged in a stealth pursuit of Teixeira through the early winter of 2008 and snagged the prize while the Red Sox, Orioles and Nationals were left out in the cold. There were no optouts and subsequent controversial extensions. There was no debate between ownership and management as to the wisdom of completing the free agent signing.
This was a No Apologies Necessary signing of an athlete who made the Yankees a more formidable team every day he was healthy enough to perform up to the numbers on the back of his baseball card. That, notably, included last season, when Teixeira was shaping up as a legitimate MVP candidate with a .924 OPS, 31 homers and 79 RBIs for a first-place team before going to down with the shin injury in mid-August that all but scuttled his team’s chances at winning anything meaningful.
“I don’t necessarily think it’s any coincidence that when Mark’s injuries started to affect how much he played, runs became a lot harder to come by around here,” Girardi noted.
Runs and romance. There is neither guarantee nor likelihood that past will be prologue here. All of the bills have come due. Long-term gain will require (at least) short-term pain.
But Teixeira’s end should not be painful. It is coming on his own terms; at least, his body’s terms. Fourteen years a big-leaguer. Eight years a Yankee, on a long-term big-money contract for which there can be no regrets.
If you are wagering who will be the Yankees’ Opening Day first baseman and Mark Teixeira’s replacement next season, the early money is on Greg Bird.
The 23-year-old left-handed hitter is out for the season after undergoing surgery to repair a right shoulder labrum tear in early February. Since Teixeira’s contract expires following this season and he wasn’t coming back even before he announced he was retiring at the end of the season Friday, many have assumed Bird would be the successor.
Teixeira was 2-4 with a double in the Yankees’ 13-7 win over the Indians Friday.
In 46 games last year, Bird batted .261 with 11 homers and 33 RBIs.
Manager Joe Girardi said Bird will have competition from Tyler Austin, a former highly regarded prospect who fell off due to injury and has worked his way back into the big league picture with a splendid season this year at Triple-A Scranton/WilkesBarre.
“This is another guy we feel can come up and impact the team,’’ Girardi said of the right-handed hitting Austin, who was batting .319 with 13 homers, 47 RBIs and a 1.055 OPS going into Friday night’s action.
Lefty Justus Sheffield, acquired from the Indians for Andrew Miller this past Sunday, made his debut in the Yankees’ organization Friday night for Single-A Tampa against Daytona.
In six innings he allowed a run, two hits, fanned 11 and walked two.
Andy Pettitte threw batting practice to the Yankees and, no, he is not contemplating a comeback.
Miller recognized Teixeira’s accomplishments at the plate but also included praise for Teixeira’s glove work.
“He was certainly a class act there and for all his hitting numbers he might be the best defensive first baseman I ever played with,’’ Miller said.
Terry Francona also heaped praise on Teixeira, calling him a model citizen and happy with the way the Yankees’ first baseman is leaving the game.
“I am glad he is doing it on his own terms,’’ Francona said.
The Yankees are 4-1 against the AL Central-leading Indians this season and have outscored the Tribe, 38-34.