Mark Teixeira finally announced why he chose the Yankees. While the money certainly had something to do with it, the decision was actually made after he consulted his boss. For details, fast forward to the 2:45 mark in the video.
Teixeira had been asking his wife. Leigh, over and over again where she thought he should play. Every time, she said she just wanted him to be happy. Mark, being the sage gentleman that he is, knew his wife had a stronger opinion than that, and wasn't going to stop until he found out. Finally, she cracked, and told him that she wanted him to be a Yankee.
From the perspective of a Red Sox fan, this interview was exactly what I wanted to see.
1) Teixeira described the free agency period as stressful. While I'm sure it is a bit stressful, your agent is doing all the work, and you can just tell him what you want, and it will happen. Hell, it's Scott Boras. If he thinks THAT's stressful, I can't wait to see how he reacts the first time he goes into a big slump, or the Yankees lose a big series to a division rival.
2) He can't even make a decision without grilling his wife to do it. I'm no idiot. In a successful marriage, you need to get input from your spouse, and it's important to bounce ideas off each other. But when she says she just wants you to be happy, over and over again, take the hint. She wants YOU to man up and decide. If you can't even do that, New York might not be the best place for you.
3) His general demeanor. New York is going to eat this kid alive. I'm looking forward to it.
Teixeira's childhood idol was supposedly Don Mattingly. That sounds appropriate. A Yankee 1st baseman who's not a Hall of Famer, and never won a World Series. That works for me.
Teixeira: 'In the back of my mind, the Yankees were always the top' [Boston.com]
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