Tex Feeling Like Old Self Again

Apr 27, 2014; Bronx, NY, USA; New York Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira (25) rounds the bases on his home run during the seventh inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Yankee Stadium. New York Yankees won 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Anthony Gruppuso-USA TODAY Sports

In what became one of the most important at-bats of the night on Sunday, New York Yankees’ first baseman Mark Teixeira with one mighty swing, tied the ball game late, and swung the momentum back towards the Bronx Bombers’ side. The Yankees would eventually score the go-ahead run on a wild pitch to win the series and the finale by a score of 3-2. For Teixeira, the swing meant so much more than just tying the game and coming up clutch when his team desperately needed him. For Tex, it was the first real, true sign that everything was going to be okay in his surgically-repaired wrist. The same wrist that cost him most of the 2013 season after injuring it while working out for Team USA in the World Baseball Classic. Teixeira told Andrew Marchand of ESPNNewYork.com:

"The biggest thing for me is that swing felt like before I got hurt,” said Teixeira, who is batting .229 with two home runs and five RBI in 11 games. “It has been a long time since I felt that. I want to keep doing it. It is consistency, continuing to get better. Hopefully, this is the first step to a lot of those.”(h/t Andrew Marchand, ESPNNewYork.com)"

Teixeira is hoping to remain healthy, after spending time on the disabled list already this season with a pulled hamstring. “Missing those two weeks was tough because I felt like I had to start over,” he said. “But hopefully, we’ll get into a nice groove here and the weather will warm up and I’ll stay on the field and stay productive,” he told Marchand.

For the Yankees, Tex means so much more than just a bat in the middle of the order. He’s the key cog in an infield full of question marks, including age and inexperience. The Yankees had to piece meal first basemen together while he was injured, and ended up losing their back-up catcher in the process. Francisco Cervelli injured his hamstring trying to be out a double-play ball. Through 11 games in 2014, Teixeira is hitting .229 with a pair of home runs, and five runs driven in.