NEW YORK – Mark Teixeira was held out of the New York Yankees’ lineup again Saturday, given another day off to try and shake the nasty cough that’s been bothering him all season.
The All-Star first baseman has been plagued by a lingering cough since early April and has tried just about everything to get rid of it. He saw a chest specialist, who assured him it’s nothing to be worried about, and was given medicine that didn’t seem to work.
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“I’ve seen every doctor that’s out there,” Teixeira said Saturday morning, sounding hoarse and a little bit tired. “We’ve tried everything. That’s why rest is like the last effort here. I’ve taken more medicine than I’d like to, so I think we’re done with that option. Rest is kind of the final straw here for us.”
Hoping consecutive days off will help, the Yankees sat Teixeira on Friday night against Cincinnati and left him out of the lineup again Saturday. New York Manager Joe Girardi said he might give the switch hitter another day off today, too.
“It physically has to wear on him and mentally has to wear on him, and I’m just trying something different to get rid of it,” Girardi said. “It’s difficult. He wants to be out there. Tex is a ballplayer who wants to play every day. But I just said, you know what Tex, watching what you’re going through, I just don’t think a day is enough. So let’s try something else and if we can’t get rid of it with two or three days off, well we know that the rest isn’t necessarily going to help and we’re going to have to find some other way.”
Teixeira is typically a slow starter, and this season has been no different. He was hitting .228 with five homers and 20 RBI in 37 games.
MARLINS: First baseman Gaby Sanchez was sent to the minors, a year after he was on the NL All-Star team.
Sanchez is hitting .197 with one homer and 11 RBI. Last year he hit .266 with 19 homers and 78 RBI.
WHITE SOX: Paul Konerko was out of the lineup, a day after he was hit near the left eye by a pitch against the Chicago Cubs.
Konerko said he hopes to play Tuesday when the White Sox meet Minnesota.
Konerko underwent tests Friday that revealed no major damage after being hit by Jeff Samardzija. Konerko had a black eye and a cut near his nose hours before the first pitch Saturday night at Wrigley Field.
ROYALS: Everett Teaford was put on the 15-day disabled list with a lower abdominal strain.
The Royals recalled right-hander Nate Adcock from Omaha and he will start today against Arizona.
ROCKIES: Left-hander Jorge De La Rosa’s comeback from Tommy John surgery hit a speed bump when Colorado decided to shut him down because of tightness in his left forearm.
De La Rosa had been on pace to return to the Rockies’ rotation June 2, which is a day shy of the one-year anniversary of his operation. But he’s dealt with forearm tightness following his past two minor league outings.
DODGERS: Los Angeles second baseman Mark Ellis was placed on the 15-day disabled list because of a banged-up left knee — making him the fifth position player and fourth regular that Manager Don Mattingly has lost in a span of 11 days.
The Dodgers already have center fielder Matt Kemp, third baseman Juan Uribe, left fielder Juan Rivera and utility infielder Jerry Hairston Jr. on the DL.
Infielder Ivan DeJesus was recalled from Triple-A Albuquerque to fill Ellis’ roster spot.
CUBS-REDS: Chicago reacquired catcher Koyie Hill in a deal with Cincinnati for cash considerations.
Hill, 33, returns to the Cubs after spending all or part of the past five seasons in the organization from 2007-11. He batted .208 with seven home runs and 63 RBI in 252 games with the Cubs during his first stint.
Hill was batting .195 this season with a homer and five RBI for Pensacola — the Reds’ Double-A affiliate.
Cubs starting catcher Geovany Soto had left knee surgery Friday to repair a torn meniscus and was placed on the 15-day disabled list.
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