Sports

NICK EYES QUICK RETURN

Derek Jeter has grown accustomed to seeing Nick Johnson at first base this year.

Still, he wasn’t particularly unnerved about the Yankees’ defense when Johnson sprained his left wrist diving for a ball in Kansas City on Aug. 8. Johnson was placed on the disabled list two days later and Joe Torre has had to fiddle with his lineup more than normal in the interim.

“We really like having Nick out there and we’re looking forward to getting him back,” Jeter said before the Yankees faced the AL West-leading Angels last night at the Stadium.

The team learned yesterday that it likely wouldn’t be without him very much longer after Monday’s bone scan of Johnson’s wrist came back negative. “He was doing a good job,” Jeter said. “But we have enough confidence in ourselves that we would figure out a way to get by without him.”

They have, with the help of John Vander Wal, Ron Coomer and more work at the position from Jason Giambi.

“We knew what Jason could do,” Jeter said. “And we also assumed that John and Ron were ready because we knew that they had put in their work over there. A lot of people probably didn’t realize it because they didn’t think of those guys as first basemen, but we had seen them and knew they could do it.”

That doesn’t mean the Yankees won’t be far better off when Johnson returns. The bone scan’s results came as a relief to Torre.

“He can get a bat in his hand now,” Torre said. “The next step will be to get him some at-bats. Hopefully, that will happen in the next week. Maybe by the end of the week, he’ll take some batting practice and get in a game shortly after that.”

Whenever it is, it can’t be too soon for Torre.

“Obviously, we really want him back up here,” Torre said. “He seemed comfortable and everyone was comfortable with him. With a young player like that, you don’t want him to get out of a rhythm. But I’ve been pleased with how everyone has filled in for him, so that makes it easier for us to give him as much time as he needs.”