Lineup Assessment

We all know that in April the Yankees will start the season without Curtis Granderson, Mark Teixeira, Alex Rodriguez and possibly Derek Jeter. Jeter was a late scratch from the lineup yesterday afternoon against the Phillies after complaining about ankle discomfort. Jeter visited the doctor and the results of the MRI were that the Captain had mild inflammation in his surgically repaired ankle. GM Brian Cashman spoke to the media today and said that it is quite possible the Yankees open the 2013 regular season with Derek Jeter on the disabled list. Having Jeter out of the lineup would be a further blow to this team, which is already weakened offensively.

The Yankees will have to rely heavily on players like Brett Gardner and Ichiro Suzuki to score their runs. If the Yankees want to compete for the division title, they have to play station to station baseball and they have the makings of a team that can do so. The important thing for the Bombers is to be able to hit with men on base, and not relying on the three-run home run to score all of their runs this season. Juan Rivera and Melky Mesa are looking like more realistic options for the Yankees by the day.

Of course, Curtis Granderson will be back in early May, and there is a 70% chance that Teixeira's wrist injury heals without surgery and he will be back in late May. There is also a chance that Teixeira will need surgery to repair his wrist and could miss the entire 2013 season which would be a huge blow to this already offensively challenged team.

This is what the Yankees starting lineup can look like on Opening Day against the Red Sox without Jeter:

Brett Gardner CF
Ichiro Suzuki RF
Robinson Cano 2B
Kevin Youkilis 3B
Travis Hafner DH
Juan Rivera 1B
Chris Stewart/Francisco Cervelli C
Eduardo Nunez SS
Melky Mesa LF

That lineup looks like something that rolled out of a spring training game, and it is just that because the Yankees do not have other options they can go to due to their lack of depth at certain positions in the minor leagues.

If Derek Jeter is able to play on Opening Day, this is what the lineup can look like against Jon Lester:

Brett Gardner CF
Ichiro Suzuki RF
Derek Jeter SS
Robinson Cano 2B
Kevin Youkilis 3B
Eduardo Nunez DH
Juan Rivera 1B
Chris Stewart/Francisco Cervelli C
Melky Mesa LF

I like the above lineup because it is top heavier and you aren't forcing Travis Hafner to DH against lefties. It looks so much better having one more impact player in the top of the lineup as opposed to the first lineup. Let's hope that Jeter is healthy enough to play shortstop on Opening Day.

I believe the Yankees will not win the American League East division, as they have been accustomed to doing for years, but will finish with 86-88 wins, which should be enough to carry them into the Wildcard playoff game.