-P- Next time there's a lopsided-looking trade (like the Doug Fister or Dexter Fowler deals) and you're dying to know why the Pirates didn't get involved, the first bullet here is good to keep in mind. Sometimes, it's just not possible to worm one's way into a trade conversation. In fact, it's likely that most lopsided-looking trades happen in part because one team isn't really actively looking for the best package or has a radically different idea of what the best package might be.
-P- KDKA's Jory Rand tweets that the Pirates aren't a contender for David Price.
-P- The Red Sox have agreed to terms with Edward Mujica, a very ordinary reliever, on a two-year deal.
-P- The Royals have acquired Norichika Aoki from the Brewers for pitcher Will Smith. That's a pretty nifty trade for the Royals, but let's not overreact -- Aoki is a decent player, and nothing more. Buster Olney actually wrote that the 2014 Royals are "loading up" and could be like the 2013 Pirates, which ... I won't say it's impossible, but I don't see much reason to think so, based on their offseason moves. They're replacing Ervin Santana with Jason Vargas, which is a huge downgrade, and Aoki isn't likely to be much better than David Lough or whoever he's replacing.
-P- The new posting system may not be as favorable to the Pirates as we'd hoped.
-P- Jonah Keri's list of baseball's best trade assets is fun to read.