Mark Teixeira annoys the Mets so much that the benches clear
Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira was all over the place in Wednesday’s 9-5 win, and he got on the Mets' nerves every step of the way as the Subway Series moved to Yankee Stadium.
— MLB GIFS (@MLBGIFs) August 4, 2016
First, there was his three-run homer in the second inning that put the Yankees up 6-3.
Then came the fifth inning, when Steven Matz hit Teixeira. Believing the pitch was retribution for his homer in his previous at-bat, Teixeira jawed with Matz as he walked toward first base and the benches emptied (see video above).
Matz insisted afterward that the pitch wasn’t intentional, but Teixeira wasn’t buying it.
"Listen, I know Matz is a good kid," Teixeira told reporters, per the Yankees’ website. "I like him a lot. I've talked to him a few times. But listen, when you hit a home run and the next pitch is not even close to the plate and hits you, it just looks bad. And so I just told him I didn't appreciate it."
Finally, there was the seventh inning, when Mets reliever Hansel Robles stepped off the mound and accused Teixeira of stealing signs from second base. In an attempt to further distract Robles, Teixeira then began to make gestures to mock the idea that he was stealing signs.
The #SubwaySeries got a little heated tonight: https://t.co/vcpLzV682dhttps://t.co/hQaLCwi6Uu
— MLB (@MLB) August 4, 2016
"I've never gotten inside of someone's head just by standing there," Teixeira said. "That's a talent, I guess. Listen, if you think I have your signs, just change them. That's part of the game. I try not to do it a lot. I don't like it, trying to steal signs. If you think I have them, then change the signs. Don't try to challenge me to a duel."
Of course, there also was this grounder, which completely ate up the usually sure-handed Teixeira.
"A little roller up along first..."https://t.co/gVtcHEnwvX
— Cut4 (@Cut4) August 3, 2016
