The Yankees have gone 10-5 since I introduced this feature on April 19. On the season, they have won eight of their nine series, sweeping two. Their only series loss came in Anaheim against the Angels two weekends ago, a series in which both teams scored 15 runs in three games. The Yankees visited the White House and the Walter Reed Army Medical Center the Monday after that series and seemed to have a bit of a hangover from that day in their loss to the Orioles on Tuesday. Since then, they’ve won seven of eight despite a mounting list of aches and pains and one major injury to an every day player.

Curtis Granderson suffered a Grade 2 strain of his left groin in the Yankees’ one loss in the last eight days and is expected to be on the shelf for at least a month. With Brett Gardener shifting over to center field, Granderson’s place in the lineup is being filled by a left-field platoon of Randy Winn and Marcus Thames, while his place on the roster is being taken by Greg Golson. Golson has thus far made just one appearance, as a defensive replacement in center pushing Gardner back to left (a head-scratcher of a move, but one that seemed to pay off with Golson making a key eighth-inning catch up against the Yankee bullpen to preserve a 3-1 lead, though I imagine Gardner could have easily made the same catch).

Winn had made just three starts before Granderson’s injury and had just one hit in 13 plate appearances, but in his two start since, he’s gone 2-for-6 with a stolen base and a three-run home run that was the difference in a 4-1 win over the Orioles. In the game after Granderson’s injury, Thames took his first 0-fer of the season, but did get on base via a hit-by-pitch and is still hitting .429/.515/.643 on the season.

Gardner, meanwhile, is 12-for-27 in his active eight-game hitting streak, homered the day after Granderson’s injury, is second in the American League in steals (and has only been caught once), and is hitting .346/.430/.432 on the season. Rounding out the outfield, Nick Swisher seems to have finally conquered his home park, going 9-for-23 with three homers on the just-completed home stand, raising his season line to .295/.380/.547.

The Yankee offense as a whole has been remarkably reliable. Just once in their first 27 games have the Yankees scored as few as two runs in a game and they are averaging 5.6 runs per game, second only to the world-beating Rays in all of baseball. Robinson Cano remains among the league-leaders in most major categories, having hit .379/.446/.707 since I last checked in. Derek Jeter is off to another fine start (.310/.341/.474), is on pace for 25 homers and 130 RBIs (the latter thanks to strong performances from the bottom of the order, Gardner in particular), and has gone hitless just five times in 26 games. Mark Teixeira, a slow-starter who had his worst April ever (.136/.300/.259), has gone 7-for-20 since the calendar flipped to May. Alex Rodriguez, however, remains cold, having hit just .208/.241/.264 since last homering on April 20.

Rodriguez is among the aging Yankees who have missed games due to aches and pains. Rodriguez sat out the final game of the White Sox Series last weekend due to general fatigue and some pain in his knee. He has gone 2-for-10 with three walks but no extra base hits since. Nick Johnson’s back stiffened up on him in Anaheim, limiting him to a pinch-walk appearance over the next four games. He’s twice sat against lefties since, but is four for his last 11 with a homer, offering some hope that he’s finally pulling out of his season-long slump (.134/.363/.224 before his 3-for-3 day on Wednesday). Jorge Posada was hit on the side of the right knee by a Jeremy Guthrie pitch at the end of the Yankees’ visit to Baltimore. That knocked him out of that game and limited him to a single pinch-hitting appearance for the next two. In his third game after returning, he suffered a calf strain and has missed the last two games, though he’s expected to return to the lineup Friday night in Boston. In his stead, Francisco Cervelli has gone 7-for-21 and had a showcase game against the Orioles on Tuesday night.

Those aches and pains extend to the mound, where 40-year-old Mariano Rivera and 38-year-old Andy Pettitte have both reported discomfort in the last week. Rivera had some tightness in his side and was held out of the Orioles series. Joba Chamberlain picked up saves in the first two games, but with Girardi trying to stay away from both Chamberlain and Rivera in Wednesday’s finale, the Yankees gave up four runs in the final two innings, turning a cool 6-1 lead into a sweaty 7-5 win. Fortunately, Rivera should be back in action for the Boston series.

David Robertson was the main culprit on Wednesday. He has now allowed two runs in each of his last three outings, none of which has lasted a full inning. His strikeout and walk rates are still strong, but everything that’s being hit is being hit hard as half of the balls in play against him have gone for hits and nearly a quarter of his fly balls have left the park. Fortunately, Alfredo Aceves has been pitching well, allowing just one unearned run and stranding all four inherited baserunners in his last seven innings, though there’s some likelihood that luck is playing a part in both performances.

LOOGY Boone Logan has walked thee of the last five men he’s faced over three games and has tallied 2/3 innings in the Yankees last nine games, yet Mark Melancon remains in Scranton, having been briefly recalled in advance of Golson only to give the rest of the bullpen rest. Melancon did give up a three-run homer in his two innings of work, but one of the baserunners reaced on an error and Paul Konerko, one of the hottest hitters in baseball right now, hit the homer. As far as lefties go, Damaso Marte hasn’t been perfect, but he’s been better than Logan.

The bullpen needed a rest because Javy Vazquez lasted just three innings and four batters in his last start, which was indeed the Yankees only loss in their last eight games. He lasted just 3 2/3 his previous time out in Anaheim and is being skipped over in the upcoming Boston series, starting instead on Monday against the Tigers. Vazquez seems close to losing his starting job to Sergio Mitre, be it via demotion or the discover of an injury (or “discovery” of an injury). Mitre relieved Vazquez with three shutout innings in his last start and threw two more scoreless frames in relief of Andy Pettitte on Wednesday before giving up a two-run homer to another red-hot hitter, Baltimore’s Ty Wigginton.

As for Pettitte, he has had some elbow pain is last two times out and had to leave his last start after just 77 pitches due to a re-occurrence. An MRI showed only inflammation, and today’s off-day will give him an extra day of rest before his next start, but he bears watching, particularly with Vazquez ineffective. The four non-Vazquez starters have been the key to the Yankees’ success in the early going this year. The Yankees are undefeated in Pettitte’s six starts and, putting aside CC Sabathia’s standard Opening Day loss, have lost just once each behind Sabathia, A.J. Burnett, and Phil Hughes for a combined 18-3 record when one of those four starts a game. Losing Pettitte, who is off to the best start of his career, would be a mighty blow, particularly given the fact that, as well as the Yankees have played thus far this season, they’re still one game behind the major league-best Rays.