Manny Ramirez

Now that the Yankees have begun putting pitching on the backburner they can focus on offense.

Of course, they are interested in the big names like Manny Ramirez and Mark Teixeira, but nobody is worried about them signing either anytime soon. They’ll probably turn toward center field and the Brewers first.

They will look at other options in making a more potent offense and will reportedly only get serious with Manny if the market for him dries up.

But if the market for Ramirez were to flounder, the Bombers could try to move in and snag the future Hall of Famer on a two or three-year deal.

While signing either of these players would seem to many to be outlandish given the $243.5 million the Yankees dropped on Sabathia and Burnett this week, the Bombers’ payroll is still significantly lower than it was last year after they dropped nearly $90 million in salaries with free agents such as Jason Giambi, Bobby Abreu and Mike Mussina.

So far, the only offer that Manny has recieved this off-season has been a two-year, $45 million offer which may have been pulled off the table by the Dodgers. Manny has threatened to retire if teams don’t start showing more interest soon, but that has got to be BS.

This is a good idea by the Yankees. There is no reason getting into a bidding war for a player who is likely to request a trade in the first season of his deal if he doesn’t like Joe Girardi’s no candy policy.