Lind added as team awaits Austin appeal

The Yankees should soon find out how long they’ll be without Tyler Austin, who is expected to have his appeal of the five-game suspension stemming from last week’s brawl at Fenway Park heard as soon as Thursday.

Austin has f illed in well for Greg Bird at f i rst while Bird rehabs after ankle surgery. Before his 0-for-4 on Tuesday, Austin had been 8-for-19 with three doubles in his previous five games.

The Yankees signed Adam Lind to a minor league deal on Wednesday, as insurance at first.

Lind was with the Yankees briefly during spring training and will report to the team’s player development complex in Tampa on Thursday for extended spring training, since he wasn’t picked up by another team after he was released by the Yankees on March 14.

The 34-year-old lefty hitter had an OPS of .875 in 314 plate appearances with the Nationals last season.

The Yankees may also turn to Neil Walker, who has so far struggled from both sides of the plate. Generally a better hitter as a lefty throughout his career (.796 OPS versus righties/.688 OPS vs. southpaws), Walker has been dreadful. He’s just 6-for-38 with no extra-base hits (.414 OPS) against right-handers and 3-for-14 with a double (.500 OPS) against lefties.

Walker could still be feeling the effect of not having a full spring training, since he didn’t sign with the Yankees until March 12.

CC Sabathia is scheduled to return to the mound Thursday after being shelved with a hip injury that landed him on the 10-day disabled list.

The lefty gave up three homers in four innings against the Orioles in The Bronx on April 6 before leaving with tightness in his hip.

The Yankees could use a solid start against the second-place Blue Jays. Sabathia pitched effectively for five innings in his first start of the year in Toronto, limiting the Blue Jays to two runs (one earned) in five innings.

Since pitching well as a group to start the season, the Yankees’ rotation has been inconsistent. After Masahiro Tanaka got pounded for seven runs (six earned) on Tuesday, Yankees’ starters had a combined ERA of 4.84. Just five teams in the AL entered Wednesday with a worse mark. A pair of prospects are making progress after rough spring trainings. Tha i r o E s t r ad a , who was shot in the right hip when he was the victim of a robbery attempt in his native Venezuela in January, was activated off the disabled list by Class-A Tampa on Wednesday. The shortstop immediately impressed, going 3-for-5 with a double in his debut.

He spent 2017 with Double-A Trenton and also played in the Arizona Fall League.

Right-hander Albert Abreu is inching closer to games and will soon be pitching in simulated games. The 22-year-old, who was acquired in the deal that sent Brian McCann to Houston, underwent an appendectomy in February. He finished last season with Tampa and also appeared in the AFL.