New York Yankees Notes, Quotes 2009-03-21

--DH Hideki Matsui isn't expected to play in the field until June, when the interleague part of the schedule comes around, manager Joe Girardi said recently, which will limit the Yankees' options. With Matsui recovering from left knee surgery -- and also sporting a surgically repaired right knee -- Girardi said he won't expect Matsui to be anything other than the designated hitter. "I still think it's something we're going to have to watch all year long with Matty," Girardi said. The Yankees could run into problems with such a rigid situation at DH considering they also will have to deal with C Jorge Posada's recovery from shoulder surgery and 3B Alex Rodriguez's eventual return from hip surgery. If either of those players goes for a long time without being able to play the field, the Yankees will have a logjam at DH.

--LHP Damaso Marte, who had a strained left shoulder, was expected to appear in his first action of the spring on March 22. Marte had said he injured himself lifting weights while preparing for the World Baseball Classic with the Dominican Republic team. The Yankees are counting on him to be a key part of their late inning relief corps.

--CF Melky Cabrera, barring a trade, likely has at least earned himself a spot on the Yankees roster if not his old starting job in center field. Cabrera watched rival CF Brett Gardner get off to a hot start this spring -- and knew he already had to overcome his own demotion last season and Gardner's added dimension of speed -- but didn't sulk, which impressed manager Joe Girardi. "Melky didn't panic," Girardi recently told reporters, while saying he would announce a starter near the end of spring training. "He just kept doing his thing, which is a sign of maturity."

--2B Robinson Cano, who had been out because of bursitis in his right shoulder, played his normal position again on March 20. Cano, who had hidden soreness from the Yankees so he could represent the Dominican Republic in the World Baseball Classic, told reporters he "felt fine" and "normal" after playing as the designated hitter on March 19.

BY THE NUMBERS: .259 -- Mark Teixeira's career average for April, a mark he hopes to improve on this season with fellow slugger Alex Rodriguez out of the lineup because of a hip injury.

QUOTE TO NOTE: "I've got Bruce Lee on my triceps. If it wasn't for Bruce, we might have been in trouble." -- Yankees RHP A.J. Burnett, who was struck by a line drive on his left arm, which features a tattoo of Lee, the martial arts icon.