A 16-10 April turned into a 15-13 May. Considering Kevin Youkilis played one game in the month, Mark Teixeira didn’t dress once, Andy Pettitte missed two weeks, Eduardo Nunez has been out since May 5 and Francisco Cervelli has been gone since late April, it could have been worse.
Starting last night Teixeira and Youkilis returned from the disabled list, which means Lyle Overbay became a bench player.
Overbay and the other fill-ins not only provided feel-good stories, they produced. Now, the pressure on Teixeira and Youkilis is enormous to deliver and help keep the Yankees relevant in the AL East.
Of course, their return doesn’t make the Yankees complete. Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter are on the DL, and while the club says they are expected back after the All-Star break (July 15-18), that’s not the way to bet.
Curtis Granderson’s season started May 14, and he went back on the DL May 25 with a fractured left pinkie. Nunez, Jeter’s replacement, has a strained right oblique muscle. Cervelli has been out since April 26 and is not close to returning.
If not for the five-game losing streak the Yankees snapped last night, their second month could have been better than the first.
MVP: Mariano Rivera
Forget the blown save against the Mets this past week, when three soft hits resulted in Rivera’s first flush of the year.
After going 10-for-10 in April, the all-time saves leader went 8-for-9 in May.
And with the Yankees’ margin of error so slim because of a lineup that sweats to score runs, Rivera saving all but one win was the biggest reason the Yankees stayed afloat.
LVP: Vernon Wells
Wells certainly contributed to the Yankees’ success in April and early May, but he tailed off from the middle of the month.
On May 15, Wells was batting .300 with 10 homers and 23 RBIs. Going into last night’s game, a 7-for-44 (.159) slide had dropped the average to .258. During that stretch, Wells had one homer and drove in two runs.
LOOKING AHEAD
The pressure on Youkilis and Teixeira will be severe. Before the Yankees knew they wouldn’t have Jeter and Granderson and would lose Youkilis for a long stretch, the belief was Teixeira needed to be better than the .251 hitter with 24 homers and 84 RBIs he was a year ago when he battled health issues.
Now, with the fickle fans falling in love with Overbay, all eyes will be on Teixeira to produce since he is taking Overbay’s job.
Two games against the Red Sox at home start a month in which the Yankees’ upcoming opponents had a combined 255-228 record going into last night’s action.
Following a three-game series with the Indians, the Yankees open a 10-game, 11-day West Coast trip that starts in Seattle, moves to Oakland and finishes in Anaheim.
After that, the Dodgers visit for two and the Rays for four. Then it’s three against the Rangers before the month ends with three in Baltimore.
ARMS MUST STAY STRONG
Much has been made of Teixeira and Youkilis returning, but if the Yankees don’t continue to pitch like they did in April and May — starters and relievers — July could be spent being sellers.
CC Sabathia, who has dropped 10 pounds since spring training opened, has to be better than he was in May when he was 0-2 with a 4.86 ERA in five starts. He allowed 37 hits in 29 2/3 innings and admitted Sunday that “I am hurting the team.’’
Pettitte must answer questions about his durability at 40. Phil Hughes has to avoid the ups and downs.
5 KEY STATS
.272 CC Sabathia’s batting average against after last night’s win . His career mark is .246.
37 Players used by Yankees this season. Used 45 all of last year.
25 Number of games played by Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Mark Teixeira, Curtis Granderson and Kevin Youkilis this season.
40/2 Yankees batters’ strikeout/walk ratio in the four-game sweep by the Mets.
49 At-bats Vernon Wells has gone without a home run after last night.
george.king@nypost.com