Tampa Bay Rays

So far this offseason, there has been much talk of the Rays moving Matt Garza and even possibly James Shields. With the big losses of Carl Crawford to Boston and Carlos Pena to Chicago, Rafael Soriano's pending signing with a new squad, along with Jason Bartlett having been dealt to San Diego, it's easy to expect a drop off from a Rays team that won the division just a year ago. However, it is not time to consider moving two of their top pitchers when they have so much dynamic talent coming up from the system soon.

The Tampa Bay Rays have shown that they don't have the cash to splash in the hot-stove season, which is why they were forced to let Carl Crawford sign a mega-deal with the Boston Red Sox, Carlos Pena sign $10 million single-year deal with the Chicago Cubs and trade Jason Bartlett to the San Diego Padres for next to nobody.

Rarely is it the case that one baseball player can change the entire fate of his division. But it could happen when a star player leaves one contender for another, as Crawford did, from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Boston Red Sox.

We can start by looking at the 2008 and 2010 Rays. In 2008, the team had a bunch of "stars", including Crawford, and a few superstars. But just about every everyday player was "league average" or better, except for Ben Zobrist (who has since become a star) and Willy Aybar, still a "utility" player.

The Tampa Bay Rays have gone through baseball's version of a liquidation sale in the 2010 offseason. It is almost as if any player with any value has left the team or has been rumored to be traded with few exceptions.

Starting with the expected departure of Carl Crawford to the Boston Red Sox and the subsequent departures of players including Carlos Pena and Jason Bartlett the team will look very different in 2011.

When a fan asked David Price on twitter about how the team will be different in 2011, he responded jokingly by saying, "the field will still look the same."

When you see a hitter hit long balls year after year after year, you tend to evaluate the hitter's value based only on his power numbers.

Don't Discount Sternberg Bailing Out     For all the anger Carl Crawford received for going to the Red Sox, fans should wonder about Stuart Sternberg's intentions as the Rays owner.

Sternberg talked about having a fire sale in spring training, and he let everyone know he wasn't kidding. The Rays are having their fire sale by letting all of their free agents walk, and Matt Garza, Jason Bartlett and James Shields are going to be traded most likely.

Deal He Will Get: Seven years, $18 million/year

Deal He Should Get: Five years, $10 million/year

The future location of free agent outfielder Carl Crawford has been a hot topic this off-season and interest continues to grow in the star player since his contract ended with the Rays this past season.

Although many teams might not be able to afford his large contract requests(some say he is looking for $100 million), he could still be an early Christmas present for any team that bids the right price for him.

Derek Jeter and the New York Yankees have been going back and forth in negotiations that don't look like they are going to end anytime soon.

There doesn't appear to be a large market for a shortstop that will turn 37 years old next season. The Yankees are still by far the most probable team that Derek will play for next season.

However, since he is a free agent, anything is possible. If Derek Jeter is not in Yankee pinstripes next season, what uniform could he be wearing?

Maybe that of the Tampa Bay Rays.

This upcoming offseason marks an offseason of transition for the Tampa Bay Rays.