Who plays first for Yankees with Mark Teixeira's season in jeopardy?

The New York Yankees placed first baseman Mark Teixeira on the 15-day disabled list on Saturday with a cartilage tear in his right knee.

General manager Brian Cashman has already acknowledged the injury could be significant enough to require surgery, which for all intents and purposes would end Teixeira's season.

It's still premature to say that will be the result. Teixeira has yet to be examined by team physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad. There's still hope he can be treated with injections, rather than surgery, but given the wear and tear on Teixeira's body there's obvious concern he won't be healthy or anywhere near effective again this season.

It's not a pleasant thought, but it could be the Yankees reality. If it is, then they are quickly running out of viable options to play first base.

The Yankees had hoped to have top prospect Greg Bird in the mix by now. He's a first baseman by trade and a potential impact hitter, which would have made him a perfect fit under these circumstances. Unfortunately, his season is definitely over after undergoing shoulder surgery in February.

With Bird down, the options get a lot less exciting, and even some of those options aren't available. For example, Dustin Ackley earned the backup job behind Teixeira in spring training, but he had season-ending shoulder surgery this week. He's out of the mix, as is Austin Romine, because the Yankees would prefer to keep him behind the plate.

That leaves them with a hodge podge of options that would require some on-the-fly adjustments. Chad Jennings of the Lohud Yankees Blog details many of the pros and cons of those options, which he lists to include Romine, Chris Parmalee, Rob Refsnyder, Nick Swisher, Brian McCann, Chase Headley and even Alex Rodriguez.

Rodriguez would certainly get the most attention as an every day player in the field, but the Yankees seemed to abandon that option last season when A-Rod struggled in limited first base duty.

Headley would make for the smoothest transition from an athletic standpoint, but the Yankees might prefer him at third base.

Refsnyder stands out as an obvious choice, as it would require the least maneuvering elsewhere, but the Yankees could also use it as a way to get McCann from behind the plate more often. It's not like the Yankees have no options to choose from. They can mix and match and possibly get by, but no one will give them the all-around production of Teixeira, meaning some rough moments could lie ahead and a revolving door may be built at first base.