"Both of them played great," Girardi said after the Yankees beat Pittsburgh 9-8. "Gardie finished up strong and had a great camp. Right now I think Gardie has a little bit of the edge. He brings a little more speed to the lineup."

The speedy Gardner had a .228 batting average over 42 games in 2008, but was successful on 13 of 14 stolen-base attempts. He is hitting .385 with five stolen bases in 22 spring training games.

The Yankees plan to have Cabrera on the regular-season roster in a backup role.

"Melky had a tough year last year, but came into camp, was ready to go and played very well," Girardi said. "Melky is going to have a lot of important things to do for us. He's a switch-hitter, can put him anywhere in the outfield. He can run."

Cabrera hit .249 in 129 games last season. He was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wikes-Barre on Aug. 15, and played 15 games there before being recalled Sept. 5.

In 21 games this spring, Cabrera is hitting .340.