Bronx Spenders

There are a few signs that winter is upon us; the weather turns cold, it gets dark earlier, and the Yankees spend a lot of money. You can add these events to death and taxes, and this year should be no different.

With Jason Giambi, Andy Pettitte, Mike Mussina, Carl Pavano, Bobby Abreu, and Ivan Rodriguez all having their contracts expire, the Yankees lost about $86 million in committed salaries from the end of the ’08 season. $86 million.

Some of that will get redistributed to players already on the roster, such as raises for Alex Rodriguez, Xavier Nady, Robinson Cano, and Chien-Ming Wang. However, even if the Yankees just maintain a $205 million payroll (a $5 million decrease from 2008), they’ll still have about $65 million to spend even after taking care of the guys already under contract.

What can they buy for $65 million this winter? How about CC Sabathia and Andy Pettitte to fill the rotation with a side of Mark Teixeira to play first base? Or if Sabathia decides he doesn’t want to pitch in New York, they could try to get both A.J. Burnett and Ryan Dempster for a similar cash output.

Or, they could take a flyer on Ben Sheets‘ health and use the money saved on the rotation to go after Manny Ramirez, who could team with Teixeira to return their line-up to the most fearsome in the game.

Regardless of which way they decide to head, and who ends up taking their money, it seems clear that the Yankees are going to land at least two big name free agents this winter, and it could easily be three or four. There’s no doubt that Scott Boras has his eye on the Bronx as a cash cow for the free agents he represents, and we’re likely going to see some big money press conferences in the next few months.

The Evil Empire is about reload.