Today’s update is powered by . . . chocolates, and Lucy:

• Tyler Kepner on Jeter’s next contract:

. . . In some ways, Jeter’s performance will affect the size of his next contract. If he has another standout season, churning out hits and moving nimbly from side to side on defense, he is clearly in a stronger position. But unless he pulls a George Costanza and drags the championship trophy around the parking lot from his bumper, Jeter’s legacy is secure. He is the icon of the franchise.

. . . Jeter’s value is different, and the Yankees understand they must treat him as a special case. Parting ways would be devastating to their brand, but no less so to Jeter’s legacy. The Yankees and Jeter need each other, and it is hard to imagine acrimony at the bargaining table.

. . . Jeter’s ability to stay above the fray, easily accessible to the news media yet out of the firing line, is part of his mystique. In Jeter, the Yankees know they have a dependable, well-spoken, maintenance-free front man for a global business. That is part of why they will pay him handsomely after this season.

The question is how much. Jeter has talked about wanting to own a team someday, and his next contract will help in that ambition. The value of the deal will also reveal something about Jeter and his true feelings about Rodriguez.

Will Jeter demand a contract that also takes him through age 42? Will he seek to make more than Rodriguez?

[My take: Give him three years/$60-70M and then a stake in the Yanks.]

• The GM on Damon, Jeter, Mo and Joe:

“The industry the last two free agent markets seems to be going downward and the player’s ages are going upward,” Cashman said. “It makes more sense to be patient. My attitude is if this is the place you want to be, you will make it happen. Johnny Damon professed his love for the Yankees, wanted to be here and was given every chance to be here. He’s not here anymore and I don’t feel that is the Yankees’ fault. They have to reconcile why they are not here, not me. If people want to be here and be a part of something, then find a way to work it out. Of course we want (Jeter, Rivera, and Girardi) back, but we choose to delay that until the end of the year.”

Cashman confirmed reports that Damon wanted the same two-year, $18-million deal that right fielder Bobby Abreu got from the Angels in order to re-sign with the Yankees, who countered with two years and $14 million. Damon reportedly has a two-year, $14-million offer on the table from the Tigers.

“I hope he does not sign for something less than our offer,” Cashman said. “That means he should have been a Yankee and that’s not our fault.

• Do the Yanks have an eye on Jeter’s heir apparent?:

According to the multiple members of the international scouting community, the world champions will be serious bidders on Cuban defector Adeinis Hechavarria when the Office of Foreign Assets Committee (OFAC) allows him to sign with MLB clubs.

MLB sent a letter to teams on Jan. 22 telling them Hechavarria and other Cuban defectors have not been “unblocked” by OFAC. OFAC has to verify his age, identity and residency — in this case, Mexico. It is believed OFAC might have everything done next week.

“The Yankees have been on him for a while,” said a scout who saw the 21-year-old shortstop work out recently in the Dominican Republic. “Two weeks ago, about 50 scouts watched him work out and the Yankees were there. They also have seen him in smaller workouts.”

• Will Brett’s boost in bunting boost batting average?:

. . . This offseason, Gardner spent a lot of time working on his bunting skills, too, and he’d like to develop that into a weapon this year.

“That’s the good thing about hitting off a (pitching) machine,” Gardner said yesterday, after his first precamp workout at the Yankees’ minor-league complex. “You can bunt 50 or 100 balls in 15 or 20 minutes. No time. I’ve been bunting a lot, working on that more and trying to bring that back into my game.

“Now it’s just a matter of being comfortable enough with it not to be scared to do it in a game and have confidence that I’m going to put it where I want it. Not only can it be a tool to get on base, but it keeps defenses honest and can bring the corners in and maybe I can shoot some balls by them.”

The 26-year-old Gardner had just one bunt hit last season, according to the Web site baseball-reference.com, a total he’d love to see skyrocket as part of his speed-and-defense based game.

• Melido Perez (marginal SP for ’92-’95 squads) turns 44 today.

Back on Thursday.