By Danny Powell

With the Boston Red Sox claiming their second World Series title in four years and Alex Rodriguez turning into Mr. Optober, the 2007 Major League Baseball season is officially over. At least when we look back, we can say the best team truly did win it all this year.

But for now, it is onward to the always entertaining off-season. It didn’t take long for the action to kick off this year and it is already clear that New York will be the epicenter for hot-stove action yet again. Rodriguez, probably the best player in baseball today and the clear front-runner for the American League Most Valuable Player award, is a free agent. All 30 teams have a shot to grab him, they just need to be open to likely dropping over $250 million over the next eight years, something the New York Yankees have stated they are unwilling to do since Rodriguez opted out.

Perhaps the team that benefits the most from A-Rod’s decision is the Texas Rangers. Aside from saving $21.3 million dollars that they were due to pay on Rodriguez’s contract, they may have an opportunity to move struggling third baseman Hank Blalock. Blalock, who will make over $5 million in 2008, has struggled the past two seasons, including an injury plagued 2007 in which he played only 58 games. Still, he could be one of the more affordable options as the Yanks look to replace some of A-Rod’s production at the hot corner.

Third base may not be the only hole the Bronx Bombers have to fill this winter. Catcher Jorge Posada and closer Mariano Rivera have both already filed for free agency while star pitcher Andy Pettitte has yet to decide on his own player option for 2008. If all three decide to leave New York, it could be disastrous as the starting lineup could feature Jose Molina catching, Wilson Betemit at third, Joba Chamberlain having to move back to the bullpen to take over as closer, and only four starting pitchers returning, two of them under 23 years old.

Still it does appear highly unlikely all three will depart, as Rivera has already announced that manager Joe Torre’s departure will not influence his decision and he is likely interested in staying a career Yankee as long as the money is right. Pettitte will probably be back as well, if for no reason other than it is pretty tough to walk away from $16 million in guaranteed money.

Posada could be a sticking point, however. Following the best year of his stellar career, the backstop is going to want big money and likely a somewhat long-term deal. It is tough to guarantee $10 million or more a year for three or four years to a 36-year-old playing a position that takes a beating unlike any other in baseball. Complicating matters further is the difficult relationship Posada has with new manager Joe Girardi, who was sort of like a rival big brother as Posada’s mentor with the Yankees in the late 90’s.

Which brings us to the managerial decision made by the Steinbrenner boys and their “baseball people.” The first decision made with Hank and Hal at the helm was a good one. Torre was a great manager for 12 years in New York, but it was time to move on. Left with a two horse race between Girardi and bench coach and former captain Don Mattingly, Girardi was the clear choice. He has succeeded as a manager at the big league level, winning the Manager of the Year award in 2006 with the Florida Marlins. He has also played in the Bronx and understands the media attention that comes with the job. There was not a better man for the job available.

Meanwhile, Mattingly has decided to leave the organization after losing out on the opportunity to manage. All you can say to Mattingly is “Goodbye, and good luck.” While Donny Baseball is a fan favorite and a good baseball guy, he hasn’t managed so much as a McDonald’s let alone a major league baseball franchise so how could he have possibly been ready to take over the richest team in the bigs? Still Mattingly claimed he was ready, insisting he had been managing along in his head during games for years now. Me too, Donny, me too.

Joba Chamberlain may be back in the bullpen, unless the Yankees make some serious offseason moves. (sports.yahoo.com)