-P- The Pirates are heading to Bradenton for Spring Training -- here's a shot of their equipment truck.

-P- Keith Law (insider-only) ranks the Pirates' farm system seventh in baseball. The Cardinals (who have a loaded farm system headed by Oscar Taveras, Shelby Miller and Carlos Martinez) are ranked first, and the Cubs fifth.

-P- The Royals' new slogan is "Come To Play," which brought to my mind old Pirates slogans like "We Will" and "Come See Us Play." There's a desperation there. It must be hard for a team like the Royals to come up with a slogan that isn't easy to mock.

-P- The Indians have signed outfielder Jeremy Hermida to a minor-league deal. It's been ages since Hermida, as a Marlin, was one of the best prospects in baseball. He actually did have one very good season in the majors, in 2007, but it happened in Florida, so no one saw it. Since 2010, he's settled in as a Quad-A player, and he didn't hit in Tucson last year, so at barely 29, he might be nearly done.

-P- The Orioles re-signed Joel Pineiro to a minor-league deal. Pineiro had just about the Dave Duncan-iest season of all time when he put up 4.7 wins above replacement for the Cardinals back in 2009, but he wasn't particularly good with the Angels in 2011, and he had shoulder surgery last year and didn't pitch in the majors.