New York Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira ran sprints at "80 percent" to test his injured calf yesterday and said he could be return to action as soon as this evening, reports Jeff Bradley of the New Jersey Star-Ledger:

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.

Following his workout, Teixeira told reporters that he ran "close to full speed," but admitted that he realizes "game speed and practice speed are different." It doesn’t sound like the 32-year-old will truly know how his calf will respond until he returns to action for New York, but he was encouraged by yesterday’s workout session.

On the season, Teixeira has hit .255/.335/.478 with twenty-six doubles and twenty-three home runs over 435 at-bats for the Yankees.