Gary Sheffield and Derek Jeter were back in the lineup for the Yankees on Tuesday night, as both players checked out OK in regard to their respective injuries.

Sheffield underwent an MRI on Monday on his sore left hand, and was diagnosed with tendinitis. After a visit to hand specialist Dr. Melvin Rosenwasser, a suggestion was made that he take a cortisone shot, but the right fielder declined, opting to take anti-inflammatory medication instead.

"No more of that. I don't want to take cortisone shots," Sheffield said. "You feel like you're OK, but you're really not. In the long term, you pay for it, so I'm not doing that anymore."

"That's a personal thing," said manager Joe Torre. "Years ago, when I played, cortisone shots were fired up at every opportunity. Philosophies have changed since then, I'm sure for the better."

Jeter, who had X-rays taken on his left elbow after being hit by a pitch on Saturday, came to Yankee Stadium on Monday to undergo treatment with team trainers. He took early batting practice on Tuesday to show Torre that he was ready to go, so Torre inserted him into the lineup.

"He's probably not 100 percent, but I'd never ask him that," Torre said. "He'd lie to me anyway."

"It's going to be sore for a while, but that's normal any time you get hit," Jeter said. "It's really not that big of a deal. I got hit in the elbow, and it hurts. I'm fine."

Jeter, who has a habit of hanging over home plate during his at-bats, will wear a small elbow guard on his arm on Tuesday, though he doesn't know how long he'll continue to do so.

The Yankees also had Jorge Posada back in the lineup after the catcher missed Sunday's game with a bruised right shoulder.

Bernie's back: Bernie Williams also found himself back in the lineup on Tuesday, two days after his eighth-inning RBI double lifted the Yankees to a win over the Mets.

Williams has started just eight of the last 18 games since being benched on May 2. He went 2-for-13 on the Yankees' nine-game road trip, but both of those hits were game-winners for New York.

"I don't want to keep him out of the lineup. If somebody shows that they have something going, we'll find a way to do it," said Torre, who benched Tino Martinez for Tuesday's game, starting Jason Giambi at first and Williams at DH. "It helps that the players are respectful of each other. It makes my job easier, though trying to keep everybody sharp isn't easy."

Torre plans to start Martinez at first base on Wednesday, though he hadn't decided whether Giambi or Williams will be the DH.

World beater? With the World Baseball Classic, a World Cup-style tournament, set to debut during 2006 Spring Training, Torre was asked during his pregame media session on Tuesday whether he would consider managing the U.S. team.

"I'd have to look at it. I'd have to check with the Yankees first, because that's my obligation," Torre said. "There's very little managing going on in Spring Training, and we have a good group of people that I guess it's a possibility. I couldn't do something like that unless everybody was comfortable."

Torre has been consistent for years in his opinion that a team's record in exhibition games isn't very important, but he would have to leave the day-to-day operation of the club to his coaches.

As for big-league players taking a couple of weeks away from Spring Training, Torre didn't seem opposed to the idea.

"They'd be playing baseball, and Spring Training gives you more freedom to do some things," the manager said. "There's always the danger of somebody getting hurt, having to travel, which could take something out of you. The fact that Major League Baseball and the players association are together on this thing, that's a novelty to begin with. It's something you'd have to support."

Yanks claim Crozier: The Yankees claimed first baseman Eric Crozier off waivers from the Blue Jays on Tuesday, optioning the 26-year-old to Double-A Trenton.

Crozier was hitting .226 with five home runs and 14 RBIs in 37 games with Triple-A Syracuse this season. He appeared in 14 games with Toronto in 2004, batting .152 (5-for-33) with two homers and four RBIs in his first big-league stint.

Flash forward: On April 16, Tom Gordon's ERA stood at an unsightly 7.50. By the end of April, the right-hander got it down to 4.91, still high above the 2.21 he posted last season.

Gordon has done even better in May, holding the opposition scoreless in nine of his 12 outings. His 2.53 ERA this month has lowered his overall number to 3.74, and Torre believes that Gordon's recent improvement is due to his renewed confidence in all of his pitches.

"He's using his offspeed more, and he became a one-speeder for a while," said Torre, citing Gordon's use of his curveball. "You can't throw hard enough if everything is the same speed."

On deck: The Yankees host the Tigers in the second of three games at the Stadium, with Chien-Ming Wang making his return to the rotation after being skipped during the last turn. Detroit sends Mike Maroth to the mound. http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/NASAp...=.jsp&c_id=nyy