Now The Yanks Get Scary

May 31, 2013; Bronx, NY, USA; New York Yankees player Mark Teixeira before the game against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Perlman/THE STAR-LEDGER via USA TODAY Sports

Uh, oh. The Yankees are reloading. After having so many players carted off in wheelbarrows because they had filled every available ambulance, one by one New York Yankee players that have been jinxed by pinstripes since spring training are returning to the roster.

For the first two months of the 2013 season New York has competed–and competed well–with a patchwork roster. Manager Joe Girardi performed more magic tricks than David Copperfield to hold things together and going into Saturday play the Yankees owned a 31-23 record.

They accomplished this without Derek Jeter, without Alex Rodriguez, without Andy Pettitte part of the time, without first baseman Mark Teixeira, without catcher Francisco Cervelli, without third baseman Kevin Youkilis, without outfielder Curtis Granderson (except for a cameo just long enough for him to get injured for a second time), without Ivan Nova part of the time, with a comebacking Mariano Rivera, and with an ace, CC Sabathia, whose velocity was in decline.

Even general manager Brian Cashman was injured in a skydiving accident in March. He broke his leg in a charity event. Not too many baseball people feel too charitable towards the New York Yankees given their long history of domination, but this season has been so strange as New York copes with mass casualties that there is certainly grudging admiration for their hanging in.

The Yankees managed to lose four straight to the New York Mets in this past week’s Subway Series, but by the time they opened against the Boston Red Sox, their real No. 1 rival, Friday night, Youkilis was playing for the first time in weeks and Teixeira was playing for the first time this year. Pettitte is scheduled to come off of the disabled list Monday.

Just what are the Yankees going to do with Travis Hafner, Vernon Wells and Lyle Overbay, the guys who kept them afloat when the other guys were hurt? Some creative roster management is called for by Cashman.

Despite all of the woes New York was eight games over .500 following the 4-1 triumph over Boston Friday night. Sabathia, who couldn’t figure out why his arm was behaving tired and not propelling pitches to the plate with his normal speed, was back up to 94 mph. Teixeira went 0-for-3 and Youkilis was 1-for-4, but at least they were in a game.

For most of the first two months of the season the Yankees were relying on strangers in the lineup, veteran players whom everyone else appeared to consider over the hill. But they all helped New York. It didn’t hurt any that Rivera, who is 43, and planned to retire last year, came back as good as ever from the knee injury that killed most of his 2012 season.

The all-time saves leader says he is going to retire this year, but based on performance there’s no reason to suggest why. Rivera has 19 saves and a 1.77 earned run average. Right, he looks washed up. Rivera should stick around and go for 700 career saves. That’ll only take him another season or two.

Jeter is not due back until after the All-Star break. Rodriguez is not expected back until at least then, if then. That will be gravy.

It is definitely bad news for the rest of the American League that the Yankees held their own during the worst of times. As established All-Star-caliber player after player gets healthy, it will be almost as if New York is plugging in first-round draft choices by the week as the season heads into the pennant stretch.

There is every reason for the Yankees to feel good about themselves and every reason for the other teams in the league to worry about the Yankees coming on fast.