Soft.

At this rate, he should be ready to go by early November:

"First baseman Mark Teixeira ran 10-12 sprints Thursday at what he called '80 percent' effort and said 'things are headed in the right direction.'

While Teixeira, out since Aug. 27 with a left calf strain, did not rule out a return to the lineup tonight, from all indications Saturday is more likely.

'I ran close to full speed,' Teixeira said. 'But game speed and practice speed are different, so it’s difficult to really go full speed in practice, but it was encouraging.' "

You're not a sprinter in the Olympics, you're a first baseman in a pennant race.

If you're 80%, you play.