It's no secret that Mark Teixeira is struggling at the plate big time this year. The numbers speak for themselves: In 37 games he is hitting .228 with 5 Home runs and 20 RBI. His On Base Percentage is only .283 he has only scored 18 runs. If you browse Twitter and Facebook, Yankee fans are very passionate about their feelings toward Tex. The haters are always going to hate, but even those fans who have Teixeira's back are beginning to realize that something needs to be done with Tex. His struggles really date back to the 2010 ALCS up to today. So the question becomes...what can be done?
I think we can rule two options OUT right away...
- The Yankees are not trading Teixeira anytime soon. That is just not happening. There isn't a team in MLB who would pick up that contract.
- The Yankees are not benching Tex for a long period of time. It just doesn't work that way as much as some fans would love to do that. I mean, maybe Girardi will sit him a game here and there, but you don't pay a man $23-million to sit on your bench. Plus, you can't argue against his defense. His glove alone is worth keeping him in the lineup.
Okay, so what ARE some options?...
- Well, maybe you slide him down in the lineup. Reward Granderson and Ibanez for power numbers and slot him in the 4 or 5 whole and slide Tex down to 6 or 7?
- Yankees pick up a veteran lefty first baseman who might be floating around right now unsigned. Someone who will not kill you in the field, but can hit for average and park a few into the right field bleachers. Who is that player? I'm not sure, but I'm sure if the Yanks did some digging they could produce one.
But there is one option that I haven't really heard anyone talk about that I have been thinking about for quite a while. What about ending Teixeira's career as a switch hitter? Maybe its time the Yankees demand Tex concentrate on only one side of the plate. His switch hitting days would be over. Personally, I feel that Teixeira should give up the right side of the plate. Tex becomes a left handed hitter exclusively. Does this sound crazy to you? Okay, hear me out...
Here are his career numbers from both sides of the plate. After you soak in the numbers continue to read on and I will explain why I feel his switch hitting days should be over....
Tex from the left side vs. righty pitchers...
- 1,307 Games -- 3,715 At bats -- 230 Home Runs -- .270 Avg. -- 713 RBI's -- 482 BB's -- .361 OBP
- 811 Games -- 1,866 At bats -- 88 Home Runs -- .302 Avg. -- 321 RBI's -- 219 BB's -- .391 OBP
As you can obviously see Tex has batted from the left side a lot more in his career than the right side. So therefore his career home runs and RBI's are much higher. But, as you see, his career batting average is over .300 from the right side. Even in his few years with the Yankees you can see that when Tex bats from the right side he sprays the ball around much more but without as much power. So the question becomes...do you want a Mark Teixeira that hits for a higher average and all parts of the field? Or, do you want the power hitting Mark Teixeira who can end a game with one swing? I want the power hitting Teixeira. I want him hitting 40+ home runs with 110+ RBI's.
Look, I know the Mark Teixeira we are seeing right now is not on his way to hitting 40+ home runs and 110+ RBI. But that's the point of this article. I think if Teixeira concentrates on one side of the plate (in my opinion, that is lefty), it could bring his career at the plate back on track. We could see those numbers he was putting up in Texas and in his last couple years with the Yankees. I know what I am suggesting probably will not happen but you have to admit, it's not that crazy after all, don't you think?
--Mikey Blue, BYB Senior Writer
Email: DonnieBaseball2323@gmail.com
Twitter: @MikeyBlu23
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