Now that Brian Cashman has signed on for three more years, it's time for the Yankees to get back to doing what they do best -- namely, throwing ungodly sums of money at players. The starting rotation needs the most attention, especially considering Chien-Ming Wang, who made all of 15 starts in 2008, is the only sure thing.

Feel free to pencil Joba Chamberlain in for a spot, though given his injury history, anything more than 20 starts should be considered gravy. Theoretically Philip Hughes and/or Ian Kennedy will contend for a spot, but only if they make huge strides over the offseason.

Andy Pettitte? As of last month he still hadn't decided if he wanted to play another year. Same goes for Mike Mussina, who told the New York Daily News yesterday he hasn't "put a timetable" on making up his mind.

So what other options are the Yankees considering? George King III of the New York Post is convinced CC Sabathia, the jewel of free agency, is headed for California, which could make A.J. Burnett the new top option.

There's a large, gaping hole of symbolism between a fun-to-report total rumor and a legitimately important celebrity relationship story. And that hole can be filled when two people as famous as Alex Rodriguez and Madonna are seen eating dinner together. (Or when Madonna allegedly "brainwashes" A-Rod, but that's beside the point.)

Which is what the New York Post is reporting, via the always fun "sources."

REPS for Madonna and Alex Rodriguez deny the two dined together at Dos Caminos on Third Avenue the other night. But sources insist the Yankee star broke bread with Madge and two male friends. "Madonna entered through the front door half an hour after A-Rod arrived and had her security guards check the exits before she sat down at a quiet corner table," said one source. Madonna had the men laughing with her stories. When the meal was over, they left by separate exits.

I don't feel "good" about reporting this -- clearly it has nothing to do with the actual playoffs going on. However, A-Rod and Madonna are two enormously famous celebrities in their respective corners of the world, so it's going to be news to lots of people when they come together.

Perhaps neither one is really that great in terms of legitimate non-pop culture likability (I can only imagine the fake-accent-spewing children they would crank out), but they are both immensely talented and popular. So if they start dating, I'm gonna tell you about it. (Oh yeah, it might be important to note that their reps are totally denying all of this.)

Also, how awful would C-Rod feel if Alex took the Yankees to a title the year after they locked up that divorce? I think it would be fairly awkward.

After weighing his options, Brian Cashman decided to return to the Yankees, agreeing to a three-year extension on Tuesday. From the New York Times:

"I know I've said it before, but it's an incredible opportunity and honor to hold the title of general manager for the New York Yankees," Cashman said in a statement. "With it comes a great responsibility to ownership, the people who wear the uniform and our fan base. I've got a job to finish here. That's the bottom line.

"I consider coming off a season where we didn't reach the playoffs for the first time since 1993 as a personal challenge. I've never been one to run from a challenge, and I look forward to having the chance to go after this thing again."

I can't say I'm terribly surprised. The Yankees are the only team Cashman has ever been with, and leaving now, on the eve of opening the new stadium, would have been a difficult decision. Plus, it's not like the Yankees aren't making it worth his while -- Newsday reports that his new contract is "in the vicinity of three years and $6 million."

The Yankees aren't in the playoffs, but Joba Chamberlain's shoulder continues to haunt the headlines!

George King III reports in today's New York Post that Joba left his final outing of the season on Sunday feeling tightness in his right shoulder. Although he didn't complain of any discomfort before last weekend, it's possible this has been plaguing him for a while:

According to a scout who recently tracked Chamberlain, tightness could be why his velocity was down during the final two weeks of the season. "He was throwing 91 mph and a lot of sliders," the scout said of Chamberlain, whose fastball was clocked at 97-98 mph before he spent almost a month on the DL with rotator-cuff tendinitis.

The ailment isn't considered to be too serious, but it's still a disheartening way to head into the offseason, especially considering the Yankees had toyed with the idea of letting him pitch winter ball to rack up a few more innings. Now, it seems like the prudent move would be to tie him up in bubblewrap and send him home for the winter.

After all that Mike Mussina has accomplished -- he's been to the All-Star game five times, won six Gold Gloves, ranks 19th all-time in strikeouts and 33rd all-time in wins -- one measley win in an absolutely meaningless regular season game shouldn't really matter. But it does.

By pitching six shutout innings agains the Red Sox yesterday afternoon, Mussina won 20 games in a season for the first time in his 18-year career. At 39, he became the oldest player in major league history to accomplish the feat. Although he hasn't officially made up his mind if he wants to try breaking his own record by doing it again at 40, he certainly sounded like a guy ready to hang them up. From the New York Times:

"I've been envious of every guy who's retired since I've been playing - you've done what you wanted to do, and I still have to grind it out, that kind of thing," Mussina said, enjoying a soda in the manager's office between games of a doubleheader. "You get to go home and relax, and you've played the game as long as you've chosen to play it. I've felt good for every one of them."

The season is almost over, and we're finishing up with the Yankees and the Red Sox. And hey: I'm glad to be rid of at least one of them.

So begins our annual switchover to playoff-themed Dugouts. Or, if you want to be specific, "How Hard Is It To Do Four Dugouts A Week About The Angels."

Tonight's Dugout (chock full of new and seldomly used screen names) is after the jump.

With the Yankees season ending on Sunday, it will also signify the end of the Jason Giambi era in the Bronx. He'll be looking for a multi-year deal this offseason, and nobody expects the Yankees to be the team that offers him one. So with that in mind, it's time for Jason to start figuring out where he's going to play next season.

One destination that would seem to be a good fit is Toronto.

Where will Giambi go from here? The Yankees hold a $23 million option for 2009, which they will certainly buy out for $5 million. Giambi hopes to play for several more years, so he'll be looking for a multiyear deal this winter.

One potential suitor could be the Blue Jays, according to a source, as Giambi has a relationship with GM J.P. Ricciardi from their days together in Oakland and Toronto could use another big bat.

When you think about it, it's a perfect fit for both Giambi and the Blue Jays. Giambi can provide the power the team lacked this season, and Jason can finally get the hell out of the United States. I mean, I don't see Canada's government holding any hearings on steroids, do you? He'll finally be free from the shackles of Congress!

Does Mariano Rivera need surgery? That's the buzz in the New York Times after the closer returned to New York to undergo an MRI on his right shoulder.

There is some fear that Rivera could need arthroscopic surgery, although the procedure would be minor and would not be expected to affect him next spring.

"The only way that would happen is if tests indicate that should happen," General Manager Brian Cashman said of the surgery. "I can't say at this point."

Of course, you wouldn't know any of this if it Joe Girardi had his way. When meeting with reporters last night, Girardi steadfastly denied that Rivera had any specific pain, suggesting Rivera was returning to New York for a mere physical. Cashman's account completely contradicts Girardi's story, which apparently is becoming quite common these days. From Peter Abraham of the LoHud Yankees:

Girardi got contentious when asked about his misleading statements, slamming his fist down on his desk. It's similar to what happened earlier this season when Phil Hughes, Brian Bruney, Chien-Ming Wang, Jorge Posada and Damaso Marte got hurt. Girardi'a first inclination is to be misleading.

It has gotten to the point where team officials now apologize to reporters for the manager's actions. Nobody is sure why he does it because he gets caught every time.

Girardi had a reputation of being a straight-shooter (perhaps to a fault) before taking the Yankees job, but it's possible the glare of the Big Apple has taken its toll. He's not a rookie manager, but one year with the Marlins couldn't possibly have prepared him for the daily media onslaught he's gone through in New York. Here's to hoping Rivera checks out clean this weekend and Girardi starts coming clean going forward.

Yankees GM Brian Cashman's future has been a topic of discussion all year, but now that the Yankees have officially been eliminated, Hank and Hal Steinbrenner want to know his intentions now. Technically, Cashman's current deal doesn't expire until the end of the October, but Sports Illustrated's Jon Heyman said the Steinbrenner Bros. want to know Cashman's intentions by next week.

Most baseball people believe that for a variety of reasons, including an excellent working relationship with Hank Steinbrenner's younger, quieter brother Hal, Cashman will choose to return to the job he's held for 11 years. Cashman is expected to give both Steinbrenners his answer as early as next Monday or Tuesday. Negotiations on his new deal would begin the moment Cashman provides the go-ahead and are not expected to take long.

The Steinbrenner Bros. have made it clear that they'd love to bring Cashman back, and simply because of the market you'd have to imagine they'd be willing to make him the highest-paid GM in the game. Even so, Heyman suggests that Cashman might be intrigued by potential front-office openings in Seattle, Philadelphia and maybe even Washington. (Really? He'd jump from the spend-happy Yankees to the thrifty Nationals? Talk about a culture shock.)

No other team can offer the resources for Cashman to do his job like the Yankees can, but in turn he must deal with extremely high expectations. My hunch is that Cashman stays, but only with assurances that Hal will keep Hank in check and allow Cashman to do his job without meddling from the top. Whether that's a concession Hank would actually agree to remains to be seen.

Hank Steinbrenner is jumping bad. As Fornelli reported earlier, the Yankees' co-owner is upset about a number of things. In a magnificent transcendence of introspection, clarity, and common sense, Steinbrenner terms the AL East as unfair, laments the socialist nature of revenue sharing, and shrieks foul of the NL West and the 2006 St. Louis Cardinals.

I love obtuse, obscenely rich folks as much as the next guy, but they sure don't make it easy!

Today's Dugout is after the jump.