Making matters worse, Posada had this beauty for a cameo: “I kind of apologized to [Yankees manager Joe Girardi]. I just had a bad day yesterday.”

We agree, Jorgie. A real bad day. But “kind of” apologizing to your manager doesn’t cut it. Either way, Posada is totally out of line in this instance. Let’s say that he was feeling one hundred percent but was just miffed that Girardi dropped him (and his .165 batting average) to ninth in the batting order. Is that a reason to be coy and just ask for a day off? Shame on Girardi for not asking more questions of his designated hitter.

“Hey, can I have the day off?” is not something that should be followed by a yes, but rather a “why?” Or in Posada’s case, a “thanks.” When your DH is hitting miles under the Mendoza Line, any time you can leave his name off the line-up card is a huge advantage.

Once the missus Tweeted that his back was the reason he needed to sit, Posada looked foolish. He would have been better of being honest (if his back was in fact bothering him) and told Girardi as much. Instead, he had to make a spectacle of himself.

This is not totally out of character for Posada, either. Yes, he has been a good soldier for the majority of his time in baseball but let’s not forget when Posada stomped on the tiny home plate cameras like a pair of Bronx cockroaches during the 2004 ALCS. And then he had an attitude about it when questioned.

The only reason why he is still in pinstripes is because of his successful past. When Yankees general manager Brian Cashman re-signed him to a four-year, $52.4 million dollar free agent contract in 2007 (the last time he hit .300), it was because the crosstown Mets were wooing him. Cashman upped his original offer by a year to keep Posada around and now he is paying $13.1 million for a disgruntled former catcher in his walk year.

The Yankees have no problem eating contracts and even for a hometown hero like Posada, that may be the best solution for everyone involved.

Photo by Aris Sakellaridis

Fast forward to the fourth of November and all of the chatter early on that you can’t buy a championship has quieted. Yes, the Yankees do have many home grown components on the roster but without the addition of the big three free agents there would not have been a 27th World championship won.

After a rash of busts that have gone through Yankee Stadium since the last championship in 2000, the organization was meticulous in doing their home work. They needed to address the starting rotation and did so in astonishing fashion, inking lefthander CC Sabathia and righty A. J. Burnett. With Jason Giambi’s albatross of a contract finally expired, the Yankees had a hole at first base.

At the 11th hour, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman swooped in and signed Mark Teixiera right under Boston’s nose. This completed the trifecta of big name additions and immediately put the Yankees as favorites to win it all.

They not only dominated the regular season by finishing with the best overall record but easily dismissed the Twins and Angels in the playoffs. They then defeated the defending champions in six games. The Phillies were a formidable opponent but it was men versus boys. Even the biggest Yankee hater has to tip his or her hat to them following the 7-3 clincher at the new Yankee Stadium.

It is quite amazing when you sit back and ponder that not only have the Yankees captured 27 titles but also 40 American League pennants since they moved from Baltimore back in 1903. The next two teams on the list are the St. Louis Cardinals with 10 World Series championships and the Athletics franchise (Philadelphia, Kansas City and Oakland) is next with nine.

Even the staunches Yankee hater has to tip his or her hat to them. Come to think of it, a bigger story this year would have been if they didn’t win it all.

NEW YORK YANKEES WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONSHIPS

1923, 1927, 1928, 1932, 1936, 1937, 1938, 1939, 1941, 1943, 1947, 1949, 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1956, 1958, 1961, 1962, 1977, 1978, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2009

Photo by Bill Menzel

It’s hard to fault Andy Pettitte for trying to shake the Yankee tree for as much money as he can. With the organization throwing money around as if it grew on the proverbial tree, the 36-year-old figures this may be his last shot at cashing in. The way his second half went last year, he may be overestimating his market value by a large margin.

The Yanks are offering him $10 million for one year and Pettitte wants the $16 million he earned the past two seasons in the Bronx. A 14-14 mark with an ERA of 4.54 will not help his cause, especially when you consider that he went 2-7 in his last 11 starts.

In case Pettitte forgot, he did state all summer long that he wanted to pitch in the new Yankee Stadium and that there aren’t many teams burning up his phone line with offers. This is a chance for him to go out gracefully the way he wants to and make a nice payday on top of it.

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Even if Pettitte returns, his place in the rotation would be number four at best. The offer that general manager Brian Cashman made to him in person at his Houston home will not be on the table forever. The Yankees are looking to ink another free agent hurler, such as A.J. Burnett, Derek Lowe or Ben Sheets – all who are more effective than Pettitte.

Even if Burnett accepts the five-year, $80 million package from the Yankees, Pettitte may still have a spot on the team. But he has to keep in mind that he is not exactly the same pitcher he was when he joined the Astros as a free agent in 2003. He is older, suffered arm injuries and went through the Mitchell Report – HGH incident.

This will in all likelihood be Pettitte’s final season. It would be appropriate for him to finish up in a place that he is welcomed and feels comfortable in. Is $10 million such an insult? When the Bronx Bombers are giving a 300-pounder money that he wasn’t even asking for, it just may be.

At least there’s a lot to love about CC Sabathia, all 311 pounds of him at last check during the playoffs. When the Yankees ballooned their offer to the free agent to $161 million over seven years, that made it over $500,000 per pound, but who’s counting?

Yes, he was the best pitcher on the open market and did deserve an expensive, long-term contract. But even with that in mind, the only other deal on the table appeared to be from the Brewers, who tried to keep Sabathia in Milwaukee with a five-year, $100 million offer. While certainly no small potatoes, it was easily trumped by the Yankees’ original six-year, $140 million monster.

Sabathia did everything possible to find another taker closer to his northern California home. Neither the Dodgers, Angels or Athletics were ever serious players in the sweepstakes, and the Giants – who are still reeling from Barry Zito mistake – were rumored to have made a trivial offer, hoping for a huge hometown discount. Sabathia made it clear that he preferred the west coast and the National League, but also money was the main issue.

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When it was all said and done, the only legitimate offer that Sabathia had was from the Yankees, and he still was able to make them feel that it was he who held them over a barrel. For reasons only known to Sabathia, his very happy wife Amber and Yankees general manager Brian Cashman, the offer went up instead of going down once they all convened at the Sabathia mansion (soon to be upgraded).

“When the opportunity was given, that’s a flight I have to take,” Cashman told reporters of the continuation process of negotiations that began at the winter meetings in Las Vegas over the past few days.

Apparently a big addition to the contract was a player opt-out clause after three years. If Sabathia and his family decide that New York is not their cup of tea, then he can walk away in 2011 with the $69 million he already pocketed.

Only 28 years old, Sabathia has a career mark of 117-73 in eight seasons, spent mostly in Cleveland before being dealt to Milwaukee right last July. As a Brewer, Sabathia went 11-2 with a 1.65 ERA, carrying the team on his back into the playoffs as the NL’s wild card entry.

Arguably the best pitcher in baseball, Sabathia now becomes the highest paid one, jumping over the six-year, $135 million deal the Mets gave Johan Santana after trading for him a year ago. Now there are two top lefthanders in New York, who will no question be compared over and over again.

Now that the Yankees have their ‘ace,’ Cashman is looking to fill the next hole. “We need to improve our rotation, and it’s not just one,” he told reporters. “It’s more than one. My intent this winter is to try to improve the club any way I possibly can, but the main focus is going to be the rotation.”

Up next is Toronto righthander A.J. Burnett, who opted out of a contract that was paying him $11 million a year to see if he could shake someone down for more. Enter the Yankees, who reportedly have a five-year, $80 million contract ready for the often injured hurler to sign. That would be a raise of $5 million every summer, not bad for a guy with an ERA over four and only nine games over .500 in a decade of experience. The former Met farmhand went 18-10 at the right time and started over 30 games for only the third time.

The printing press in the Bronx is working overtime. Once Burnett – or whoever else the second future multi-millionaire in pinstripes is – comes on board, the team will be improved. No one will question that.

But will that be enough to win number 27? Sabathia will be a big part of the team’s success, and he has 311…I mean 161 million reasons to make that a reality.