Derek Jeter

Now that Johnny Damon is a Tiger, every major free agent in the majors has been inked to a deal.

There was much activity this offseason: Roy Halladay became a Philly, Cliff Lee a Mariner, Jason Bay a Met, and Matt Holliday was given a deal that will haunt the Cardinals for years to come. 

All eyes are now on spring training and the 2010 MLB season, which promises to be a wild ride.

But let's take a look into the crystal ball for a moment, let's take a look at next year's offseason.

Bottom line, the Yankees are the defending World Series champions.

I think they have a very good shot for pulling off the repeat. The Yankees lost Hideki Matsui, Johnny Damon, Melky Cabrerea and a great prospect in outfielder Austin Jackson, however they did bring in Curtis Granderson, Javier Vazquez, Randy Winn, and Nick Johnson.

Whenever New York Yankees captain Derek Jeter speaks, it’s rare that he allows much to be known: Jeter likes to keep his true thoughts to himself, always has.

Earlier this week, Jeter held a press conference prior to the first day that position players were obligated to be in Tampa for spring training.

The Yankees experienced a magical 2009 season that resulted in their 27th championship. Everything fell into place in just the right way, and they avoided any and all unfortunate mishaps.

Alex Rodriguez was able to break out of his October nightmare, even after a crippling hip injury nearly derailed his season before it began.

Every season is different and provides a whole new set of obstacles, and this 2010 Yankee team is no different.

Why would the New York Yankees neglect to re-sign Derek Jeter before now?

At the end of this season he will be a free agent. This is the final year of a 10-year $189M contract.

It is not good to send you franchise hit leader into Spring Training with the thought of free agency on his mind. There is more than one team that would be delighted to have the future Hall of Famer (I hate it when people say that) anchoring their infield.

Jeter, 35, had one of his better years in 2009 batting .334 with 18 homers, 66 RBI, 212 hits, 107 runs and an OBP of .406.

As most of you know by now, the Yankees moved into a brand new stadium last season. The old Yankee Stadium is being torn down to make way for a large park that is expected to include baseball fields, a track, tennis courts, and more. Only one gate remains from the original 1923 Yankee Stadium.

That gate is Gate 2.

Yankee Stadium is currently being torn down and Gate 2 is expected to go with it.

See what you can do to save it!

The shortstop position has been ever changing since Cal Ripken Jr. first stepped on a major league field.

The position that used to have only the smallest players and lightest hitters is now filled with tall and powerful baseball players who use their size to extend their defensive range rather than pure speed.

The trend of big, filled-out shortstops has developed so much that it now has branches of styles stemming from it.

Work has kept me away from Bleacher Report for a couple weeks now, and I do apologize for that. But I am back with another topic for the Yankee section to talk about and discuss.

It was reported recently that Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman was not going to talk contract extensions with Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera and Joe Girardi before the season starts in 2010.

Relax, this is nothing new from the team. If anything, it's a good thing.

With the Hall of Fame election fast approaching, I’ve been meaning to write an article or two on the election, starting with my article before last. I’ve had plenty ideas of what to cover, but I finally decided to try and project the future of the Hall of Fame. I realize just how tricky this can get, with baseball’s unpredictability.