35-year old righty swinging Derek Jeter has shown no signs of slowing down despite his advancing age. Jeter played in 153 games for the Yankees last season and he was 212 for 634 (.334 avg, .871 OPS) with 107 runs scored, 18 homers, 66 RBIs and 30 stolen bases. Jeter was the leadoff hitter for the Yankees full time last season and he adjusted very well to it getting the offense going full blast. Last season Jeter went over 200 hits in a season for the 7th time and it was also his 12th season of scoring 100+ runs. The most impressive feat for Jeter last season was the fact that he is now the all-time hit leader in New York Yankees’ history with 2,747 and counting. Jeter only made 8 errors in 150 games for the Yankees last season but he showed poor range despite making a highlight reel play once in a while. The Yanks will put up with his defense as he more than makes up for it with his bat.

24-year old switch hitting Ramiro Pena will be the utility infielder for the Yankees this season. He played in 69 games for the Yankees last season and he was 33 for 115 (.287 avg, .700 OPS) with 17 runs scored, 1 homer, 10 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Pena played in 34 games at shortstop last season for the Yankees and he made 3 errors while showing poor range there. Pena will likely move around giving the older players on the Yankees a day off once in a while.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE SS IN 2010: A+

The Yankees have signed 32-year old righty swinging outfielder Marcus Thames to a minor league deal worth $900,000 bucks if he makes the team. Thames played in 87 games for the Tigers last season and he was 65 for 258 (.252 avg, .777 OPS) with 33 runs scored, 13 homers and 36 RBIs. Thames has now played in 522 games in his major league career and he is 376 for 1,549 (.243 avg, .797 OPS) with 230 runs scored, 101 homers and 261 RBIs. This was a outstanding signing for the Yankees this late in the off-season as Thames should give them a big bat off the bench in 2010.

27-year old lefty swinging 2B Robinson Cano is one of the best hitters at his position in all of baseball and that won’t change anytime soon. Cano played in 161 games for the Yankees last season and he was 204 for 637 (.320 avg, .872 OPS) with 103 runs scored, 25 homers, 85 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Ex-Yankees’ hitting coach Don Mattingly once predicted that Cano would win at least one batting title in his major league career and I believe him as Cano has a very nice hitting stroke. Plus, he’s in such a loaded lineup that teams can’t afford to pitch around anyone in their batting order giving Cano a lot of good pitches to hit. He does need to improve his defense some as he made 12 errors in 161 games at 2B last season while showing slightly below average range. Still, that is nitpicking as Cano is one of the best 2B in all of baseball.

24-year old switch-hitting Ramiro Pena will be Cano’s primary back-up at 2B in 2010. He played in 8 error-free games at 2B for the Yankees last season while showing slightly below average range.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE 2B IN 2010: A