AJC > Sports > Braves > Blog > Archives > 2008 > February > 26
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Tex limbers up for a playoff run
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — Want to know one reason, other than immense talent, that Mark Teixeira has put up better offensive statistics than all but a handful of major league players during the past five seasons?
I say this because I’m sitting here, my lower back still sore from a run in our friendy, sterile suburban neighborhood last night, drinking coffee and trying to wake up, while watching Tex do an impressive little routine at the batting cage.
The rest of the players are sitting in the dugout, looking much as I do right now (tired), waiting for the workout to start, and Teixeira is alone next to the cage, supporting himself with one hand on the rail while he does a set of stretches that would make a gymnast (or legendary punter Ray Guy) proud.
He holds his other hand out, head-high, and does a series of kicks, touching his hand with his foot each time. Then he switches around and does the same with the other hand and leg.
Then does a series of leg lifts to each side, I guess to stretch his hips out. He raises his leg until it’s parallel with the ground, straight out to his side. Then the other leg.
Then he does a thing that almost resembles figure-eights with each leg, moving the leg around in circles at painful angles, rolling it over, again and again.
At one point Mark Kotsay comes from the dugout and joins Teixeira. Kotsay, who’s in great shape this spring, mimic Teixeira’s movements, but only gets his legs about half as high in each exercise. After a minute or two, he hits Tex in the butt and says something I imagine is along the lines of, “I’m not worthy.”
Then strength and conditioning coach Frank Fultz comes over and does the same drill, Fultz raising his legs about one-quarter as high as Tex. For a moment, all three guys are holding onto the cage with one hand and doing the leg stretches, with Tex continuing to raise his in military-precision movements, not distracted by the other two guys, who are still doing theirs at one-half and one-quarter the angles of the switch-hitting first baseman.
Tex is a conditioning monster, in addition to being one of the more disciplined hitters you’ll find (I was talking to him this week and he laughed about how a lot of the Braves young players like to hack away at the plate).
Those guys will learn, but it’s worth noting that Teixeira already has, that the former Georgia Tech star has been a consistent, all-around excellent hitter since the day he got to the majors.
Oh, yeah, it’s worth noting that that five-year span, in which his 365 extra-base hits rank fifth in the majors, his 555 RBIs rank eighth, and his 170 homers rank ninth, that also happens to be his first five seasons in the bigs.
The only players with more extra-base hits in the last five years are Pujols, Big Papi, Alfonso Soriano and A-Rod. All are very rich, and Teixeira is going to join them among the highest-paid players after this season. Count on it.
Whether the Braves have the payroll to carry a six- or seven-year contract with an average annual value of more than $20 million, I have serious doubts. Maybe they’ll surprise me and raise it above $100 million next season and a little more each year after that.
Maybe Teixeira will really, really surprise me and tell Boras to take a substantially lower offer from the Braves than he’s likely to get from one of the New York or Los Angeles teams, or from Boston or Baltimore.
That’ll have to play out, because I don’t see the Braves having much chance to sign him until he gets to free agency. He’s come this far, and Boras likes to let his clients test the free-agent waters and find out what’s out there.
When I asked Tex if there was anything he could say to make Atlanta fans feel a little better about the upcoming season and the Braves’ chances of keeping him, etc, he said that they should know he’s going to do everything he can to help the Braves get to the postseason this year, and left it at that.
Enjoy him while you can, Braves Nation. As GM Frank Wren said, you make trades knowing the worst-possible scenario could unfold, that the guy you traded for won’t re-sign with you or might get hurt, or that he won’t lead you to the promised land you hoped he might.
The Braves say they’d do the July 31 trade again that sent five prospects, including Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Matt Harrison and Elvis Andrus, to Texas for Teixeira and lefty Ron Mahay, who left as a free after after spending the final two months of the season with the Braves.
Because they did the deal to get Teixeira, to have two playoff runs with him at the middle of their lineup. And if they could keep him longer, that’d be a bonus.
The first playoff run ended before it started. No postseason games for Atlanta last year.
But the Braves are about to crank up another season, this time with Tex hitting behind Chipper Jones from Day 1. And they see no reason at all that, if they stay healthy and play and pitch the way they’re capable, that they can’t win the division and get back to the postseason.
And if they get there, they like their chances with a rotation led by Smoltz, Hudson, Glavine and possibly Hampton, and with a lineup that includes Hoss and Tex as a powerful switch-hitting duo in the middle, the a duo the likes of which no team in the modern era, and perhaps any era, has featured.
OK, gonna get down to the clubhouse now: Before I forget, someone asked about Peter Moylan and Rafael Soriano and their early schedules.
Moylan is schedule to make his spring debut Friday against the Dodgers here at Dark Star, and Soriano on Sunday against the Astros, also here at The Place Where Dreams Come True (that’s the slogan over the entrance now, where it used to say Happiest Place In The World, or On Earth, or something).
Glad that we’re starting games here tomorrow, because the daily routine of batting practice and such gets old quickly.
Dawgs tomorrow, then Dodgertown on Thursday.
Are the denizens ready? Then let’s do this.
”18 WHEELS OF LOVE” by Patterson Hood
Mama ran off with a trucker
Mama ran off with a trucker
Mama ran off with a trucker
He is making her give life another stab
They can see the world from way up in the cab
Mama ran off with a trucker………..
Peterbilt Peterbilt
She can quit her job and be his little bride
He can get a local route and stay home by her side
She can fix him roast beast and sweet potato pie
He can eat a lot of it cuz he’s a big ol’ guy
They got married in Dollywood
(by a Porter Waggoner lookalike)
18 Wheels of Love
.JPG)
-1.JPG)
Services »
