Kansas City, Mo. - Ramiro Mendoza, one of the unsung contributors to the success of the three-time defending world champion New York Yankees, was activated from the 15-day disabled list Tuesday.

The 28-year-old righthander, who underwent right shoulder surgery late last season, was eligible to be activated off the disabled list and the Yankees wasted little time in adding Mendoza to a suspect bullpen.

He was effective in limited action this spring but New York took the cautious approach and left him behind to start the season.

Mendoza offers Yankees manager Joe Torre much-needed flexibility. New York had unproven Christian Parker in the rotation but the 25-year-old rookie is sidelined indefinitely with right shoulder inflammation.

Torre also may want to slot Mendoza into the righthanded setup man's role, which has not been filled since the offseason departure of Jeff Nelson.

When healthy, Mendoza has been a valuable commodity for the Yankees as a long reliever and spot starter, going 7-4 with a 4.25 ERA in 14 appearances in 2000.