AL East

My first weekend without Yankee baseball had me feeling how I imagine Mark Teixeira feels before his postseason at-bats: confused, helpless, and resigned to a fate that cannot be avoided.

The World Series is starting on Wednesday, and I can tell you I'll probably only have a cursory interest in it. Whenever the team that eliminated the Yankees advances to the Fall Classic, I have trouble rooting for anything but horrible things to happen to the American League entrant.

Just in case you didn’t know, a 2009 World Series rematch between the New York Yankees and Philadelphia Phillies is not happening.

To many baseball fans surprise, both powerhouse ballclubs lost in the Championship Series. Some might say the Phillies and Yankees lacked the heart, as making the postseason is basically part of the regular schedules.

Regardless of the reason, a loss is a loss no matter how it happened, who was injured, why so many players were slumping or if a team had too many days off. 

A reader selected a Yankee to either go away or to stay in the New York Daily News poll. He loves to oust guys than keep guys.

He ousted the usual suspects like Joba Chamberlain, Phil Hughes, Javier Vazquez and Nick Johnson. He ousted one guy that will make people react. That guy is Yankees manager Joe Girardi.

Yes, it's time for Girardi to go. A change might be beneficial for everyone involved.

Grow the arms, buy the bats.

That's what Andy MacPhail has preached since taking over as the Baltimore Orioles' President of Baseball Operations midway through the 2007 season.

The Orioles have traded away many veterans over the past few years to acquire plenty of young pitching, and drafted young arms as well.

Now it's time to live up to your trademark quote, Andy. Now it's time to buy the bats.

“I get no respect, I tell ya.” – Rodney Dangerfield

Most Yankees fans and media for that matter have focused on one name for the Yankees to target during their annual free-agent bonanza. 

The name should be familiar to every baseball fan by now. His name is Cliff Lee and over the past two seasons he has proven himself to be not only a difference-maker, but a clutch postseason performer. 

Ever since Javier Vazquez made a name for himself in 2004, after giving up a grand slam to Johnny Damon in the American League Championship series, Yankee fans have dreaded the sight of the right-hander on the mound. 

When the Yankees traded for Vazquez in the 2009 offseason, mixed feelings were going around. He was coming off an incredible, Cy-Young worthy season, during which he recorded a 2.87 ERA for the Braves, but Yankee fans still had a hollow spot in their hearts for Vazquez.

With the 2010 season ending for the New York Yankees after Friday night's Game 6 loss to the Texas Rangers in the ALCS, the focus has quickly shifted to the off season and what moves the Bombers will make in order to win a 28th World Series championship in 2011.

One of the pressing items on the Yankees' to-do list this winter is to re-sign captain and soon-to-be free agent Derek Jeter.

Free agency. It is what consumes GMs, owners, players and fans during baseball’s offseason.

This free agent market looks to rival that of 2008-09, when the New York Yankees went on a shopping spree scooping up CC Sabathia, Mark Teixeira, AJ Burnett and Nick Swisher.

Of course we could all speculate on the greatest moments in World Series history.

But as you will see, I've taken moments from many different eras and tried to compile what I believe to be some of the World Series' greatest moments.

Some may surprise you, and others were probably forgotten about.

Let's take a look.

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