Bert Blyleven

When the Tampa Bay Rays went to the World Series in 2008 with that small payroll it was a remarkable feat. The fact that they did it while getting past the big-spending heavyweights in their own division was even more impressive.

The Rays fell back to Earth in 2009, and once again it is looking like a two-horse race in the AL East.

The World Series champion New York Yankees should be as good as ever, and the Boston Red Sox will be right in the mix, too. The Rays are still the potential third contender among the other AL East teams, but they will need to stay healthy and have a lot of things to go right.

Toronto — after trading away ace Roy Halladay — has kind of surrendered for a couple years. Baltimore is starting to charge again, but they’re doing it with a lot of young kids, and are likely a couple years away from being a true contender.

So it’s the Yankees and Red Sox again. Let’s break down the AL East.

NEW YORK YANKEES
Last year the Yankees were the team to beat because they went out and got pitching, signing star free agents CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett. It also didn’t hurt that they signed the best free agent hitter on the market in Mark Teixeira.

This year, the Yankees (103 wins in 2009) have added even more depth to their rotation, dealing outfielder Melky Cabrera (who they didn’t need after trading for Curtis Granderson) to the Braves for Javier Vazquez. A lot of Yankees fans probably aren’t happy with Vazquez coming back as he struggled in his previous stint in the Bronx, but I think it’s a great pickup, and he’ll be a lot better the second time around because he's got more experience and will better handle the pressure. They also re-signed solid veteran Andy Pettitte, giving them four very solid starting pitchers.

In addition to having four great starters and a powerful offense, their bullpen is solid. Phil Hughes found his role last year (though he could be the fifth starter), David Robertson has starter-quality stuff in my opinion, and Mariano Rivera isn’t getting older, just better. And if Boone Logan ever figures it out, he could be a sleeper as a second lefty in the bullpen. He has great stuff, but has kind of fizzled out so far.

BOSTON RED SOX
There are some Boston Red Sox fans who might be worried about their offense after slugger Jason Bay left for the New York Mets as a free agent. But I think the Red Sox have made some nice additions. John Lackey joins the rotation as a free agent from the Angels, and will combine with Jon Lester, Josh Beckett, and a combination of Clay Buchholz, Daisuke Matsuzaka and Tim Wakefield to form a talented and deep rotation.

And the addition of shortstop Marco Scutaro, third baseman Adrian Beltre and center fielder Mike Cameron should improve the defense and combine to help offset the loss of Bay.

David Ortiz needs to avoid a continuing downturn in his career, and Mike Lowell will have to move on, as there just won’t be a place for him the way things now stand.

The Red Sox also have a very strong bullpen, talented and experienced. Expect Boston to give the Yankees a run for their money, if not overtake them.

TAMPA BAY RAYS
The Rays have a new closer, acquiring Rafael Soriano from the Braves, but other than that they haven’t done a lot to improve their ballclub after a disappointing 2009 season.

They will continue to rely on a young pitching staff — led by Matt Garza, James Shields, Jeff Niemann and David Price — and a young team in general.

The Rays need to stay healthy, and on the pitching side of things Garza and Price need to step it up and begin to really reach their potential.

On offense, Ben Zobrist emerged as a very good player in 2009, bolstering an offense already led by Carl Crawford, Evan Longoria, Carlos Pena and B.J. Upton. But the Rays need Pat Burrell to rebound from a horribly disappointing 2009 season and hope that Crawford isn’t distracted by his contract situation.

The bullpen is inexperienced, but there is some good talent there. It would help if the starters learn to go longer into games to keep the bullpen strong and healthy. I’m sure manager Joe Maddon would like to instill that in his starters.