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Tex heads to Texas Ga. Tech slugger Teixeira drafted by Rangers at No. 5
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) -- Despite an organization-wide need for pitching, the Texas Rangers considered sweet-swinging Mark Teixeira too good to pass up. The Rangers selected the Georgia Tech third baseman with the fifth overall pick in the draft Tuesday. Teixeira, considered one of college baseball's greatest switch-hitters, was the second position player taken. Pitchers went with the second, third and fourth selections. The 6-foot-3, 225-pound Teixeira (pronounced: Te-SHARE-uh) said he was hoping to be drafted by the Rangers. "I think Texas has great management, great players, especially with Alex Rodriguez being one of the best players of my generation," said Teixeira. "There's a lot of hoopla around the team." Because he's a junior, Teixeira has the option of returning to college for another year. That leverage, plus the $10 million, four-year deal "adviser" Scott Boras reportedly is seeking, were among the reasons he slipped to fifth despite being rated second in some scouting surveys. Teixeira said the chances of him signing are very good. Boras is the agent who negotiated Alex Rodriguez's $252 million, 10-year contract with the Rangers last winter. Teixeira was named national college player of the year in 2000 when he hit .427 with 18 homers and 80 RBIs. A broken right ankle kept him out of 10 weeks this season. In 16 games, he hit .419 with five homers and 20 RBIs. Over three years in college, he hit .409 with 36 homers and 165 RBIs in 140 games. Although he did not play the field for Georgia Tech this season, he said his ankle is 100 percent and he expects to play third wherever he winds up this summer. The Rangers have not discussed which level of the minors he would start at once he signs. Teixeira has hit for power and average throughout his career, including for Team USA last summer and two seasons in the Cape Cod League, which uses wooden bats. Teixeira said he became a power hitter as he got bigger and stronger, but didn't let a love for the long ball change his approach to hitting. He takes his hacks early in the count, but cuts down his swing with two strikes. That's a mature approach for a young player. He remained humble Tuesday, saying he needs to work on all aspects of his game in the minors and that he'd be willing to switch positions if asked. He put no timetable on making the majors. "If it takes 500 at-bats or 5,000 at-bats, I'll never know until I get there," he said. Called "Tex" by his friends as a take-off of his last name, Teixeira lived in College Station for three years during elementary school. He moved to Severna Park, Md., and attended the same high school as Gavin Floyd, who was taken fourth by Philadelphia. "I told him the only time we'll see each other is at All-Star games," Teixeira said. The Rangers did not have picks in the second or third rounds. They were lost in the free-agent signings of Rodriguez and Mark Petkovsek. This was the highest Texas has drafted since 1989, when it also had the fifth pick. The Rangers gambled on Texas Tech outfielder Donald Harris and bypassed Frank Thomas, among others. This also was the first draft for scouting director Tim Hallgren.
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