^[2]

Here are the basics of what we learned today about Mark Teixeira’s wrist injury…

Slight difference, but significant difference
Initially, the Yankees described Teixeira’s injury as a strained ECU tendon in his right wrist. Today, Teixeira explained that the tendon itself is fine. It’s his tendon sheath that’s partially torn. The difference seems minor — either way, it’s a partially torn right wrist – but the sheath is what holds the tendon in place, and that has to be back to 100 percent or else Teixeira risks a much more significant injury. Brian Cashman said that he himself was confused about the exact injury, and upon checking with Dr. Christopher Ahmad, Cashman confirmed that it’s the sheath that’s damaged.

Could be worse / Could get worse
Cashman said he was told that Teixeira specifically has a partially torn sheath and a stable tendon. If the sheath were fully torn, Teixeira would need surgery right away. If the tendon were unstable, he would also need surgery right away. With a partially torn sheath and a stable tendon, there’s a 70-percent chance of a full recovery with rest and non-surgical treatment. However, if Teixeira does need surgery, it’s a five- to six-month recovery before he’s able to do baseball activities. If rest doesn’t work, surgery would be season-ending.

Some things stay the same
The technical diagnosis is different from what we were originally told, but the treatment is the same. Teixeira is still expected to miss eight to 10 weeks, and he’s expected to do nothing but rest the wrist for roughly four weeks (from the time of the injury). But, as the Yankees have said all along, the exact recovery time is pretty tough to predict. Because a setback would be season-ending, the Yankees will be cautious, and Teixeira won’t be allowed to use his right wrist until the team is convinced the sheath is back to 100 percent. Jose Bautista hurried back from a similar injury last year and had surgery. “If it’s the beginning of May, the end of May, the beginning of June, I don’t know when it is,” Teixeira said. “But we got a whole bunch of season left, and the time that really matters is the playoffs.”

Associated Press photo