Sorry Yankees fans, your team is not making the playoffs this year.

That’s ridiculous, you say. They have so much talent, nobody can compete with the New York Yankees.

Well, before you get hysterical and attack me with your thoughts, let me break it down for you:

Three of the four other teams in the division are better than the Yankees because of the moves they made this off-season.

The Yanks made moves,  what do you call Rafael Soriano?

I call him the most overpaid set-up man in the history of Major League Baseball.

The team that is going to win the division is the Boston Red Sox. This is not a surprise, as they signed two of the biggest names in baseball in the past few months to beef up their clubhouse. Adrian Gonzalez, who has the second most raw power in the league (next to Adam Dunn) will be a huge addition at first base and as a designated hitter.

Sure, that was a big signing for the BoSox, but the biggest was the steal of Carl Crawford from the Tampa Bay Rays. With Crawford swiping 80 bases at the top of the lineup and Adrian Gonzalez hitting half that number in home runs, the Sox are stacked up to make a run deep through the playoffs this year.

2) The second place finisher will be the Tampa Bay Rays. A lot of focus is going towards the veterans that they inked in Manny Ramirez and Johnny Damon, both of whom had average seasons last year.

The man that will separate them from the bottom three in the division is Matt Joyce. Joyce, in limited playing time, averaged a homer roughly every 20 at-bats and a run batted in right around every five. If he can boost that pace and translate it into a full season of play, he can be the X-Factor that the Rays desperately need to make a bid for the wild card.

3) The third place team in the AL East may come as a surprise: the Baltimore Orioles. Buck Showalter can turn any team into a winning ball club. Now with this newfound talent on his hands, the Orioles will come closer to the playoffs than the Yankees will in 2011. Second baseman Brian Roberts, right fielder Nick Markakis, center fielder Adam Jones, and left fielder/designated hitter Luke Scott are all returning from last year.

For years, Roberts has been among the league leaders in doubles, Markakis has led in outfield assists, and Jones has been projected to have a breakout year. Last year, Scott hit 27 home runs to lead the team and looks prime to have another good season in 2011. Some new names on the club include Derrek Lee and Vladimir Guerrero, both big name sluggers with solid seasons last year.

The icing on the cake is the signing of Justin Duchscherer, a player who will be at the front of Baltimore’s rotation along with Jeremy Guthrie, Kevin Millwood, and Brian Matusz to follow. With their terrific offense and stabilized staff, the Orioles will be a competitive team in the American League.

Now, Yankees fans, at this point you’re screaming. The Orioles? It just can’t be, you say. However, the other teams are just looking sharper.

The Yankees were banking on Cliff Lee to sign with them this off-season, but instead he joined the Phillies to try to create a dynasty in Philadelphia. So the Yankees, left with room in their budget decided to splurge.

Sure they got Rafael Soriano but they also signed guys like Bartolo Colon, Eric Chavez, Ronnie Belliard, Freddy Garcia and Andruw Jones, none of whom have done anything of interest in the past few years.

These wash-ups are going to eat away at the Yankees’ salary and not benefit the team in any way. Ronnie Belliard and Eric Chavez will take the backseat to Robinson Cano and Alex Rodriguez, so it appears that the Yankees signed the pair as safeties just in case either of their starters gets hurt.

Bartolo Colon won’t do anything for their bullpen. He was good at a point in his career, notably with the Angels in ’05, but last year he went 3-6 in 12 starts with the White Sox. Those aren’t numbers that are going to do New York any favors.

Andruw Jones is slated to be the Yankees’ next Marcus Thames, with quality at-bats and clutch home runs. Jones is another guy who used to be good, hitting 51 home runs in a season with the Braves. However, in the five years since he has barely hit twice that number, showing a clear decline in his performance in the latter stages of his career.

Along with these dull moves comes the loss of veteran pitcher Andy Pettitte to retirement, which is a big blow to the rotation and is the deciding factor in the Yankees not making the playoffs.

Yankees fans, don’t cry too much.