Mark Teixeira To Call It A Career

Switch hitters. These guys are a rare breed in the world of baseball. Some guys can do it sure, but there are few that can do it really well. When you think of switch hitters in the game of baseball, Mark Teixeira's name usually comes to the top of the list. The switch hitting 1st baseman has done a lot in his career, winning a World Series is at the top of the list. He's done it all in this game, and it looks like he's getting out. According to reports, Teixeira will be calling it a career today, after 14 years in the Major Leagues. The announcement will come this afternoon that he will retire at the end of the year.

Tex started off his career with the Texas Rangers, the team that drafted him. During his time in Texas, he .283 with 151 homers and 499 RBI. After his time in Texas, he spent a year and a half in Atlanta and a half a season with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. When the 2008 season came to an end, Teixeira hit the free agent market. He then signed an eight year deal worth $180 Million to play with the New York Yankees. I'd say he's had a pretty good time in the Bronx. During that time, he's .249 with 201 homers and 601 RBI, to this point. His best year was with the Yankees came in 2009, where he hit .292 for the year, while smacking 39 home runs and driving in 122 runs. Those 39 Homers were tied with Carlos Pena of Tampa for the most in the AL while the 122 RBI lead the league. He finished 2nd in AL MVP voting that year to Joe Mauer of the Minnesota Twins. Tex got the last laugh as he helped lead the Yankees to a World Series Championship that year.

He's had good years since then, but injuries have cost him dearly the past few seasons. First, he missed almost all of the 2013 season with a wrist injury. Then last year, he fractured his right shin when he fouled off a pitch in the middle of August, which ended his season. He missed a chunk of time this year with a leg injury. He hasn't appeared in more than 123 games in a single season since 2011.

He's a solid defensive first baseman, having won five gold gloves in his career. He's been to the all star game three times and has received votes for MVP on seven occasions over the 14 years. Oh yeah and he's a pretty good hitter too, if you didn't know that already. He's a .269 career hitter, who's belted 404 homers and driven in 1,281 runs. Tex is one of five switch-hitters in baseball history to hit 400 home runs, joining Mickey Mantle (536), Eddie Murray (504), Chipper Jones (468) and Carlos Beltran (415). He's also one of only four switch hitters ever to smack over four hundred home runs and four hundred doubles, joining Eddie Murray, Chipper Jones, and Carlos Beltran.

Injuries, and the fact that his production is way down this season (he is hitting under .200 at the time of this writing) are major factors into why Teixeira may be calling it a career. He's had a good career over the last 14 years and given everything he's had during his playing days in Texas, Atlanta, Anaheim and New York. Thanks Tex for a great career.