Is It Time for the Yankees to Shut Mark Teixeira Down for the Rest of 2013?
June 18, 2013 · Chris Stephens · Jump to comments
Article Source: Bleacher Report - New York Yankees
New York Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira is headed back to the disabled list with the same injury to his wrist. Is it time for him to shut it down for the year?
Mark Teixeira is going on DL. No surprise. Yankees bringing back RHP Adam Warren. Heard OF Zoilo Almonte could be added too.
— Sweeny Murti (@YankeesWFAN) June 18, 2013
After returning from the disabled list, Teixeira played in 15 games, batting .151 with three home runs and 12 RBI.
With everything that’s gone on with Teixeira this year, is it time for the New York Yankees to shut him down for season-ending surgery and get him ready for 2014?
Background
Teixeira originally hurt his wrist while taking batting practice for Team USA in preparation for the World Baseball Classic.
It was a freak thing that happened with nobody to blame.
What made it nice for the Yankees was the fact that the WBC payed Teixeira’s salary ($7.38 million) while he was out.
Since the Yankees brought him off the DL, they’re now on the hook for the remainder of his season’s contract.
Why Surgery is the Best Thing
Surgery is the route the Yankees and Teixeira need to go.
If he just stays on the disabled list until he feels ready to go, the same thing is going to happen. He’ll play on it for a few weeks and then it will tweak again.
Then what?
Surgery would be the next course of action.
The Yankees have been doing fine with Teixeira out of the lineup. With Teixeira out of the lineup, the Yankees are 32-23. With him in the lineup, they were 6-8, including losing their last five games.
Injuries are nothing new for the Yankees this year, as they’ve dealt with a whole slew of them.
From Derek Jeter to Alex Rodriguez to Curtis Granderson to Kevin Youkilis, the Yankees are literally the walking wounded.
But that hasn’t stopped them from being seven games above .500 and only three games back in the AL East.
Moves the Yankees Can Make
While New York was counting on Teixeira to be in the lineup at this point (and he could still return), they can still make moves to help the team.
They can make a trade for multiple first basemen who are free agents after this season. Paul Konerko (the White Sox owe him), Kendrys Morales and Michael Morse could all be had for a decent price.
All three bring power and wouldn’t be in the way of Teixeira coming back next year.
They could also move Youkilis to first and trade for someone like Michael Young.
What the Yankees can’t afford is for Teixeira to do more damage to his wrist by playing. Doing so could risk part of the 2014 season if he isn’t careful.
There are options on the table. The Yankees just have to save their first baseman from himself and do what’s in the best interest of the team. After all, he’s still got three years and $67.5 million left on his contract.
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