Marc Topkin of The St. Petersburg Times says that the New York Yankees are expected to be big players when Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Carl Crawford becomes a free agent after the 2010 season.

Despite his pending free agency, Crawford did not want to focus on the future. Rather, he kept all reports here in the present. “I just don’t even get to that point,” he said. “I’m still with the team, with the Rays. I just like to think about things we’re doing here. And my mind is still I want to be a Ray, and I don’t even think past next year. I don’t even want my mind to venture that far, ’cause I’ve still got to focus on playing the game.”

In late February, the Rays and Crawford tabled their contract extension talks. Crawford is looking for market value, which would be in the $13-16 million per season range. Rays’ owner Stuart Sternberg said at the time that the team’s payroll will be under $60 million next year, so at the time it was hard to believe that the team was going to dedicate over 25% of their payroll to one player.

Crawford, 28, hit .305 with 15 home runs, 68 RBIs and had 60 stolen bases in 2009 with the Rays. This is Crawford’s final season of a six-year $33.5 million contract. You can see Crawford’s contract history and statistics here.