The Tampa Bay Rays wasted little time in exercising their 2010 option on left-fielder Carl Crawford. Crawford's outstanding season included "slash" stats (average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage) of .305/.364/.452, 60 stolen bases and a MVP of the All-Star game, easily meriting the $10 million contract.

Having committed that amount to Crawford, along with being on the hook for $8 million due to DH Pat Burrell, Tampa may be reluctant to offer Upton a large salary, likely leading to arbitration. 

Upton's sub-par season of .241/.313/.373 may not bode well for him heading towards arbitration. He will, however, be due a giant raise from his '08 salary of $435,000.

Also hurting Upton's future in Tampa are his periodical mental lapses and occasional lack of hustle. Ultra player's-manager Joe Maddon went so far as to bench Upton during '08.  Step in the New York Yankees.

Coming off a world championship may seem like a poor time to look for improvements, but New York will have big decisions to make preparing for 2010. The biggest decisions, sans Andy Pettitte's status, come from the outfield. Not their strongest part of the field in '09, the potential outfield of 2010 has a lot of wiggle room.

Likely gone is free agent Xavier Nady. After suffering a second major elbow injury, Nady's career may even be in jeopardy. Free agent Jerry Hairston, Jr. may be retained, but only as a fourth/fifth outfielder or fifth/sixth infielder.

Certainly in the mix will be Nick Swisher. Swisher's deal is through 2011 and he seems to relish New York. Also in control will be arbitration-eligible Melky Cabrera. Developing into a solid player, Cabrera can expect a hefty raise. Speedster Brett Gardner will likely see the opening day roster, possibly as the fourth outfielder.

Which leads us to Johnny Damon. At 36, yet still a valuable offensive player, (.282/.365/.489) Damon will surely draw interest as a free agent. Should that interest come from the Yankees? 

Tough call. This writer says no. Damon's defensive liabilities are only expanding and his productivity will slip eventually.

If that opens left field, I suggest moving Swisher to left and letting the stronger armed Cabrera play right, thus opening the sacred real estate in between.

Of course, acquiring the ultra talented Upton will not, and should not, be cheap. 

For his services, I suggest New York offer a pair of Austin's. Number one prospect Austin Jackson seems ready for the big's after a season at AAA where he hovered around .350 until a late season slump. Jackson is also the organization's best defender in center field. 

Austin number two is Austin Romine. The highly touted catcher was recently named the Florida State League (high A) MVP and continues to impress in the Arizona Fall League.  With Tampa catcher Dioner Navarro undergoing elbow surgery, another receiver should be on the team's wish list.

The final Yankee dilemma: Hideki Matsui. This World Series hero and MVP also enters free agency at 35 and in possesion of balky knees. If the Yankees sign him, (and I hope they do) the DH role is then occupied, leaving aging catcher Jorge Posada behind the plate.

In an ideal world, Matsui's knees allow him to play an occasional left field, giving Posada time off from behind the plate. 

With Upton possibly roaming all that sacred real estate, maybe Matsui will need only to catch the at-him balls.

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Derek Jeter would have it no other way.  The Yankee captain has, and will, always put victory first. 

The "W" is all that matters.

On the night Derek Jeter collected career hits 2,719, 2,720 and 2,721 to tie Lou Gehrig for the club's all-time lead, his bullpen surrendered zero hits. 

Thanks to the "Joba Rules", which limits starter Joba Chamberlain's innings, the Yankee 'pen was summoned after three innings. 

Alfredo Aceves (3 innings), Jonathan Albaladejo (2 innings), Brian Bruney (.2 innings) and Phil Coke (.1 innings) combined for six innings of no-hit baseball.  Albaladejo (5-1) earned the win with Coke getting his second save.

These types of pitching lines are becoming the norm for a group that Yankee fans can't help but believe in. 

Could it be that the unbuildable "bridge" to Mariano has finally been rebuilt? 

Not since Mendoza, Stanton and Nelson has the Yankee 'pen seemed so cohesive, and the numbers don't lie.

First and foremost are the wins and losses. 

Yankee relievers have a combined record of 36-14 for a .720 winning percentage.  Those are the most wins and fewest losses in baseball. 

Amazingly, the Yankees have finished the seventh inning tied 15 times and are 15-0 in these games. 

Leading the way in victories is Mr. Everything Alfredo Aceves at 10-1. 

Aceves has pitched in virtually every role for the Yankees and has been rewarded with that fine record. 

Other big winners are super set-up man Phil Hughes (6-3), Albaladejo (5-1) (despite most of the season in the minors), Bruney (4-0) and Coke (4-3).

Of course, most of these wins only become recorded history after the G.O.A.T. does his job.  That is the Greatest Of All Time Rivera. 

With a league leading 39 saves in 40 chances and 35 in a row, Rivera continues to be breathtaking. 

Actually, breathtaking may be a poor choice of words.  Rarely does he labor, and thus rarely do others hold their breath. 

As a team, New York leads baseball with 46 saves and is second to Cincinnati's 10 blown saves with 11.

All this wealth spread so evenly among relievers is no small task.  In fact, it could be argued that the job manager Joe Girardi has done with his bullpen should lead to manager of the year consideration. 

It is easy for Yankee fans to recall how Joe Torre trusted few relievers, relying on the same arms to the point of abuse, i.e. Quantrill, Gordon, Proctor. 

It's also easy to to recall the championships Mr. Torre won with the depth of one 'pen having Mendoza, Stanton, Nelson and Rivera.

As October nears and a return to the postseason all but guaranteed, Yankee fans can at least have some cautious optimism. 

Especially if the games are close late.

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As a player, few argue against naming Rivera the greatest closer ever.  In fact, the only person I've heard name better closers than Rivera is Rivera himself.  In a recent ESPN interview, Rivera rattled off many current closers he declared better than him.  Many beg to differ.

As a person, Rivera calls for such superlative words that writing them causes injustice.  But, I need to fill the page so how about: class, character, competitor, humble, thankful, gracious, teacher, mentor...and now omissions could fill the rest of the page.

The statistics on the back of the card have become stuff of legend.  The statistics in the postseason are unseen before and likely unseen again.

Inevitably, you hear analysts marvel that Rivera has made such a career with one pitch.  His immortal cut fastball.  If you look, it's more than one pitch.  It's one pitch that can locate on any one of the four quadrants of home plate.  With the command of a maestro, that one cutter becomes four.  And don't forget the put-away four-seam fastball up in the batter's eyes.

Now, as for the article's title, is Rivera the most valuable Yankee ever?  Was the hitter Ruth more valuable?  The pride of Gehrig?  The Clipper or Mick in center?  The Chairman of the Board Whitey on the hill?  The 10-ringed Berra?  I beg to differ.  I'll take "The Great Rivera".

After a superlative outing Monday night in Cleveland, Chamberlain may have taken a step in keeping his spot in the Yankee rotation. A career high eight innings pitched allowing four hits, two runs, two bases on balls, and five strikeouts.

That pitching line may not seem dominant, but anyone who watched this performance knows otherwise. After retiring the first 11 batters before giving up a solo home run to Victor Martinez, Chamberlain's "stuff" was electric. A fastball consistently hitting 96 mph in desired locations, breaking balls falling off the table, change ups at the right time in the right spot.

Granted, this is only one start. Chamberlain's pitching has been inconsistent and his fastball is sometimes late in getting to the ballpark. The command of his other three pitches is still a work in progress.

If Monday's performance is one Chamberlain can grow from, then maybe the Yankees can sit back and enjoy this work in progress...maybe progress into the invaluable "ace" that is so hard to find, and so expensive to secure.

Baseball is a funny game in many ways. One way is that it is always evolving, while still being rooted in simple fundamentals. A simple fundamental that never goes away is the value of starting pitching.

A quality start always affords the team a chance for success. Going hand-in-hand with a quality start is a solid defense, evidenced by the Yankees setting an MLB record tonight, with 18 consecutive error-free games.

Every baseball fan has heard someone say, "pitching and defense win championships."

One way the game has evolved, however, is with the importance of the bullpen, and therein lies the question. No one forgets the success Chamberlain had in 2007, setting up for Mariano Rivera. The fact that the team's most consistent set-up man, Brian Bruney, is injured, leads people to a simple solution: put Joba back in the pen.

This may be short-sighted. There is a reason C.C. Sabathia received a $161 million dollar contract. That $161 million is about $143 million more than any set-up man has ever received. But this isn't about economics, it's about winning.

Many believe having Joba in the 'pen helps the Yankees win. I fear that if the team puts him in the 'pen again, they lose him forever as a starter. And if you take a look at championship teams, both present and past, most have had good, if not great, starting pitching.

Now, if we want to talk about Joba filling the shoes of Bigfoot, aka Mariano Rivera, then we'll cross that bridge on the dreaded day that No. 42 stops entering as Sandman.

In his 20th consecutive season calling Yankee games over the radio, John Sterling's time has long passed.  Constant errors on play calling should be considered unacceptable.

As the eyes for all of the unfortunate listeners, Sterling would rather excite the audience than report the actual events on the field.  How is this tolerated?

How often should doubles, fly outs, and foul balls be celebrated as home runs?  How often should balls be called strikes and vice-versa?  Most would say "never."

Sterling, however, seems to prioritize his emotions ahead of the game action.

Fans can appreciate the excitement a broadcaster adds to a ballgame.  Fans should not have to be misled in listening to things that simply do not occur.

Now in his fifth season of calling every pitch of every game, Sterling's miscues can be heard in literally every broadcast.  His excuse of not being able to see where the balls land does not hold water.  If he let the plays unfold and follow the signs of the umpires, his reporting would then be factual.

As for his "companera," Suzyn Waldman, where should we begin?

Strictly a color commentator since 2005, Waldman is widely regarded as the most unpopular voice of all New York metropolitan area sports teams.

Rest assured, the fact that Waldman is a woman has nothing to do with this writer's opinion.  Most would marvel at her courage breaking into a male-dominated field, as well as her courageous and successful battle with cancer.

Most cringe, however, when listening to Waldman.  She seems to have limited knowledge of baseball in general.  She compounds this with seemingly doing little homework on the game.

Her analysis is, at best, elementary.  Commenting that a pitch gave up for a home run because it "had too much of the plate" or "was a product of the count" adds little to a broadcast.

Maybe the Yankee brass simply looks at ratings to measure the quality of their radio broadcast.  Don't they realize that, for those not in front of a television, there is no other way to follow the game?

As an organization that prides itself on professionalism, tradition, and—above all—success, it is time to bring these traits into the radio booth.