Kuzul

Year in and year out the New York Yankee empire becomes increasingly more evil.  Free agency often serves as the building block of their star-studded team.  It’s nearly impossible for any of the other 29 teams to compete with their money and so great talent is lost to the Yankee Empire. 

Their 2009 spending spree of CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and Mark Teixeira landed them another ticker-tape parade down the Canyon of Heroes.  One thing is for certain: Unlike other teams in the league, their spending seems to get them places.  They boast an unprecedented 27 World Titles to show for it.

The Yankee payroll is currently around $210 million and will again grow this offseason.  While they’re often able to dump salary as well, their spending is always free when it comes to free agents and building the team.  But what if for once one of these players were to refuse that large check signed by Brian Cashman and sign elsewhere?  Who knows; maybe it will happen this offseason.

Here are 10 players who the Yankees will NOT sign this winter. 

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Every year, managers, coaches and writers from around Major League Baseball award honors and trophies to the players—and every year, they screw up.

So Bleacher Report’s Featured Columnists decided to do it ourselves. Instead of just complaining about the awards as they are announced as we would normally do on our own, we teamed up to hold our own mock awards vote.

On Monday, we kicked off Week 2 of our four-week-long results series with our picks for AL Comeback Player of the Year, then we followed that up yesterday with their counterparts in the NL. Today, we look at the best relievers in the American League.

The top five vote-getters are featured here with commentary from people who chose them. The full list of votes is at the end.

So read on, see how we did and be sure to let us know what we got wrong!

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The 2010 ALDS was probably one that I will say I hadn’t seen before for one reason alone. The home team didn’t win a single game the entire series.

Texas took the first two games in Tampa and the Rays repaid them by taking two in Texas to bring the series back to their home stadium for game five. They still couldn’t get it done as Texas took game five to move on to the ALCS.

It’s widely known that the Rays’ front office is planning on cutting payroll from this past year which means they will probably not re-sign a few of the free agents that are on their list.

Here are 10 things the Rays can do to get to the 2011 ALCS despite their lower payroll.

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With the MLB playoffs just hours away, many fans are inevitably experiencing their own version of postseason baseball butterflies.

But it isn’t just the fans that are trying to quell their nervousness; it’s also a handful of players who are playing for more than just a shot at the Fall Classic.

No pressure, really.

Lurking in the dugouts of the eight remaining teams are a collection of various players who are not only trying to help their respective teams advance in the playoffs but are also trying to prove their free-agency worth.

And what better stage than the postseason, right?

But we’re not just talking about your average, random player without a contract per say; we’re talking about some guys who already have some quality value as MLB players, whether it be as a pitcher or hitter.

Let’s take a look at who I want to highlight, and what exactly these guys are really playing for.

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The Philadelphia Phillies are the hottest playoff team in baseball right now, sporting the MLB’s best record at 94-63. They are 8-2 in their last 10 games and recently had an 11-game winning streak. They are playing outstanding baseball and look to be in postseason form, and have also clinched their fourth consecutive NL East title.

With the Phillies playing this well, can they be stopped? They have been to the past two World Series, and won it all in 2008. It will take a lot for a team to stop the Phillies once the postseason starts.

The Phillies look like they will coast through the playoffs to another World Series. It is very possible that the World Series will be their first true challenge. With that being the case, lets look at 10 reasons the Tampa Bay Rays currently are the biggest threat to the Phillies.

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The advent of sabermetrics has changed the way we look at “clutch.”

“Situational hitting” is luck. “Inducing weak contact” is luck. “Performing under pressure” is luck. It’s all been proven with math and logic and regression analysis.

But screw that, because it’s a pennant race, and even the most logical stathead has subjective ideas about who he’d most want to see step to the plate with his favorite team’s season on the line.

Here is my 2010 All-Clutch team, comprised of the players who have demonstrated the best ability to perform when it counts. I tried to limit my list to players from contending teams, since they’re the only ones who really matter at this point.

Here’s to hoping we get to see one of these guys come up with a big hit this October.

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The All-Star Game rosters usually have a way of working themselves out. Usually at the end of the day, thanks to injuries and whatnot, the players who are supposed to be there get there.

Two closers who many felt were snubbed when the original rosters were announced have found their way into the game.

With Milwaukee Brewers RHP Yovani Gallardo and New York Yankees RHP Mariano Rivera pulling themselves from the game, San Diego Padres closer Heath Bell and Tampa Bay Rays closer Rafael Soriano have been named to the NL and AL rosters respectively.

Soriano is 2-0 with a 1.65 ERA and 23 saves in 24 opportunities this season, and this will be the second straight All-Star selection for Bell, who was the loser in last year’s All-Star Game. He is tied for the NL lead with 23 saves and has a 1.72 ERA.

I feel bad for Gallardo that he won’t be able to pitch in this game, but Bell not being on the original NL roster was a joke. Really not sure how Brian Wilson got the nod over him, but like I said, these things usually have a way of working themselves out.

You can follow The Ghost of Moonlight Graham on Twitter @ theghostofmlg

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A fistful of names in baseball this year are steadily producing, but not necessarily gaining the recognition that they deserve. Many of these performances that are flying under the radar are overshadowed by those of early Cy Young and MVP candidates.

By now, Ubaldo Jimenez, Albert Pujols, Miguel Cabrera and others are household names this year. But who else will stand tall with these names as the season rolls on, and who will be surprising contributors in baseball?

Here is a handful of players in Major League Baseball who seem to be getting lost in translation behind the league leaders and flashiest of names.

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One of the great misconceptions of fantasy baseball is that a player is destined for a monster season simply because it happens to be his walk year. Theoretically, if a player has a slow start in a contract year, he may be pressing, and just needs time to get his game together.

The beauty of a 162-game schedule is that even the most frustrated players have enough time from this point forward to turn their season around. If a big contract is at stake, a player destined for free agency in 2010 will play hurt, and is likely to be a model citizen.

That said, it’s not usually not a good thing when a player hides an injury or ailment from his coaches and medical staff in order to stay in the lineup and boost his stats. Eventually, his (as well as your team’s) production will suffer.

I’m not suggesting you avoid players in the last year of their deal, but take the contract year hoopla with a grain of salt. Here are some buy-low players with upside who are in their contract year to make a trade for, as well as some sell-high candidates who you may want to unload in spite of their expiring contract.

Finally, I have enclosed some soon-to-be free agents that you might be tempted to invest in, but should avoid at all costs.

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