< Back to front page Text size – +

Teixeira says Valentine will spark rivalry

Print | Comments () Posted by Peter Abraham, Globe Staff November 30, 2011 03:01 PM

Tweet
E-mail

By Peter Abraham, Globe Staff

Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira has no love of the Red Sox. But when he spoke to reporters in New York today, he applauded the hiring of Bobby Valentine.

“I think it’s great. This rivalry is great for baseball, I’ve said it a million times. It’s great for both cities, but baseball as a whole, it seems like everyone stops just to watch those 18 games. Bobby Valentine is a great manager and he’s a funny guy. He’s got a great personality. I think the interviews either before or after games are going to be a little more interesting, and that’ll be good for both teams," he said.

Teixeira, who lives in Connecticut, knows Valentine well.

"I don’t know if he’s going to let me hit at his facility anymore in Stamford. I’ve been hitting there for two years now at Bobby V’s academy and he’s there a lot. He’s a very busy guy, obviously, but we’ll go and we’ll talk about hitting, we’ll talk about baseball," he said. "I don’t know if those conversations are going to be kept to a minimum now."