Watch Out. The First Place Yankees Are About To Get Even Better.

Here’s the line-up that the Yankees trotted out in the past week:

2B  LeMahieu

1B  Voit

CF  Hicks

DH  Sanchez 

SS  Torres

RF  Frazier

3B  Urshela

C   Romine

LF  Gardner

SP  German

Not the Bronx Bombers anyone would have bet on, right?

But, lo and behold, here we are, post Memorial Day, one-third of the way through the season, and these patched together Yankees find themselves in first place. How is that possible when this is their Injured List:

SS  Gregorious

LF  Stanton

RF  Judge

1B  Bird

SS  Tulowitzki

DH  Andujar

CF  Ellsbury

SP  Severino

SP  Sabathia

SP  Paxton

RP  Bentances

That’s an All-Star line-up in itself. But, slowly, piece by piece, the names on the injured list will be making their way back into the starting line-up, and then, well, who knows the ceiling. But who are these guys who stepped in and stepped up for the Yankees, and how will they fit in once they’re forced back to the bench? Let’s take a closer look:

DJ LeMahieu: Many Yankees fans were up in arms when they passed on the bigger name of Manny Machado, only to sign the much less heralded LeMahieu. But his resume wasn’t anything to scoff at: 3 Gold Gloves, 2 All Star games, one NL batting title. And yet he still signed on to the Yankees to be, at best, a utility infielder. Injuries to Didi Gregorious and Troy Tulowitzki (no surprises there) have given him a chance to play every day, and play he has. 

He currently batting .313 with 29 RBIs, and has the league’s 3^rdbest average with RISP. Didi will be back after the All-Star break, and thanks to some infield shuffling, LeMahieu may have solidified a place at second base.

Luke Voit: In what was supposed to be Greg Bird’s coming out season at first base, Voit has taken advantage of Bird’s absence by putting up Judge-like numbers from the two hole. Continuing on the torrid pace that he started when he was called up last year, Voit has 13 HRs and 37 RBIs to go along with 32 BBs. He’s battled through a healthy slump, diagnosed and treated with occasional stints at DH. When Judge and Stanton return, he should see better pitches, and his stock, and numbers, will continue to rise.

Gio Urshela: On the team as a defensive replacement for scheduled 3B starter Miguel Andujar, Urshela has done more than just fill in for the injured Andujar on the hot corner. He’s added some pop to his game, pairing continuous amazing plays in the infield with some shots through the infield as well, with .333 batting average along with a .388 OBP. Andujar is out for the season, and Urshela is out of options, so it looks like the perfect fit.

Domingo German: It was supposed to be Severino, Paxton and Tanaka as the three aces, and Happ as the innings eater, and Sabathia as the best #5 starter in the league. But who is leading the league with 9 wins and only one loss, and is 12^thin the MLB in WHIP? Domingo German, who came into spring training as a fringe roster player, but has blossomed into the team’s ace. With Paxton and Sabathia returning soon, and Severino coming back post All Star break, Yankees opponents will have a hard time looking for any weak spots in the starting rotation.

Currently, the Yankees are at +260 to win the AL, and +600 to win the World Series. With the impending return of their stars, is this the time to take those odds?