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Johnny Damon remains a solid player at age 38, yet he's also unemployed mere days before Spring Training camps open around baseball.

The Rays went in another direction, ending Damon's tenure after one season by signing injury-prone Luke Scott, despite Damon’s .261 average with 16 home runs, 73 RBIs and 19 stolen bases (.255-10-45 versus right-handers) while mentoring a young team that rallied to capture the AL Wild Card on the season’s final night.

The Yankees will address their DH spot after the A.J. Burnett trade rumors are settled. Raul Ibanez reportedly tops their list, but Damon is perplexed why he’s perceived as second best.

“I think it's a perfect fit,” Damon told Jon Heyman by phone while vacationing in Hawaii. “But for some reason you have

Johnny Damon and Vladimir Guerrero are notorious for signing late. Damon was twice picked up less than a month before Spring Training, inking one-year pacts with the Tigers in 2010 and Rays in 2011. Guerrero signed with the Rangers on January 9 of ’10 and the Orioles last February 18.

Here we are in February, and Damon and Guerrero remain free agents. The reason, tweeted Jayson Stark, is money with both players looking for deals around $5 million. The Yankees are looking for a DH, but on their terms, especially with players – like Hideki Matsui – essentially limited to DH roles at this stage of their respective careers. Raul Ibanez is also still out there and has been linked to the Bronx. He appeared in 134 games in left field last season and fits the Damon-Matsui mold

After digesting what the Yankees accomplished on Friday the 13^th, this is why the bold move was a good one: Potentially great pitchers are harder to find than potentially great hitters. For Jesus Montero, the Yankees acquired two that match the former in Michael Pineda and Jose Campos. The Yankees offense may have flamed out last October, but they were eliminated from the 2010 ALCS and won it all in 2009 by virtue of the quality of their pitching. Conceivably, their 2012 Opening Day rotation could read CC Sabathia, Pineda, Ivan Nova, and two of the three from Phil Hughes, Dellin Betances and Manny Banuelos. That’s a good group with all the potential in the world to be great.

Ironically, after fortifying their pitching, the Yankees are left looking for a hitter to fill the DH role.

Johnny Damon and Manny Ramirez were officially introduced as Tampa Bay Rays during a Tuesday news conference at Tropicana Field. When asked how they were feeling physically, Damon replied, “We can go in the shower - and compete there."

The idiots are reunited and plan on taking over the Tampa-St. Petersburg area, though it remains to be seen whether the two veterans can do what David Price and Evan Longoria could not – compel citizens to fill the unappealing Tropicana Field on a regular basis. For Damon, though, it’s a chance to play roughly 90 minutes from his Orlando home – and his newest dream job.

"This is home for me," Damon said. "This is my dream team. My family and friends are always out there supporting me. I'll see much more of them. I really love this opportunity

Updating an earlier post, Manny Ramirez and Johnny Damon have agreed to terms with the Rays. Pending physicals, Damon will make $5.25 million over one year, plus a potential $750,000in bonus money based on attendance, and Ramirez's deal is worth $2 million. Friday afternoon, Ken Rosenthal countered the notion that the Rays would be unable to add Ramirez if they signed Damon.

Damon had been discussing a potential reunion with the Yankees after spending a season in Detroit until the Yanks came to terms with Andruw Jones (also pending a physical). In St. Petersburg, Damon will see time in left field and Ramirez at DH to give the Rays' lineup a nice look despite losing Carl Crawford. All-Star Evan Longoria remains at third base. B.J. Upton – when his head is screwed on right –

The Rays have been talking to free agent Johnny Damon and are interested in Manny Ramirez. The general consensus has been if Damon comes to terms the financially-strapped team would be out of the running for Ramirez.

Not necessarily, writes Ken Rosenthal. For the right price, the Rays could add Damon and either Ramirez or another power hitter, Vladimir Guerrero.

Damon, no longer under consideration for a Yankees reunion since Andruw Jones is Bronx bound, would play left field. Ramirez or Guerrero would serve as the primary DH to give the Rays lineup a nice look despite losing Carl Crawford. All-Star Evan Longoria remains at third base. B.J. Upton – when his head is screwed on right – is a top-flight player.

Guerrero, who turns 36 next month, enjoyed a renaissance 2010 with the

The Yankees are interested in Andruw Jones, and so are the Rays according to Jon Heyman, while adding that Johnny Damon remains “a possibility” for both AL East rivals. If both players remained in their primes, this would be an intense debate. Not so much so today, yet it’s still interesting to ponder who would be a better fit based on what each have left.

For fans new to Yankees Universe, the 19-year-old Jones exploded on the scene in Game 1 of the 1996 World Series by hitting two home runs to become the youngest to homer in the Fall Classic at 19 years and 180 days, breaking Mickey Mantle's record of 20 years, 362 days – and he did it on The Mick’s birthday (October 20).

Jones blossomed in 2000, batting a career-high .303 with 36 home runs and 104 RBIs, and

Exhale Yankees fans. Johnny Damon told the Detroit media he's staying with the Tigers. He'll finish up a one-year deal with the team, but expressed a joy in helping mentor young players including Austin Jackson.

"I love playing with these guys and I want to finish with them," Damon said. "We always talk about winning as a team and losing as a team. I've enjoyed my time here and I want to finish it out."

Damon will now be pulled back and cannot be placed in waivers for the rest of the season.

Johnny Damon isn’t the only former idiot who may relocate. Damon will decide by Wednesday afternoon whether to stay in Detroit or accept a trade back to the Red Sox, while Ken Rosenthal is reporting that Manny Ramirez will not get through waivers.

Damon, incidentally, told Nick Cafardo he's still leaning towards the Tigers, but if the Tigers decide to go with younger players the rest of the way Damon said he would be inclined to come back to Boston. Peter Gammons told Mike Francesa he gauges Damon to Boston at better than 50-50. (WATCH)

The good news is Mannyland won’t end up in Boston or St. Petersburg, Fla. The potentially bad news is the White Sox, a team the Yankees could meet in the postseason will claim Ramirez with the intention of acquiring him. In 203 regular season