Ken Rosenthal has the latest on the A.J. Burnett situation. He notes that the Yankees want a deal to be made by Saturday, which is a day before their Spring Training begins. He describes talks between that Yankees and Pirates as being "at an impasse," but notes that the Pirates are really the only serious contender for Burnett at this point. The Angels might have been another possibility, but they're on Burnett's no-trade list, and Burnett would not approve a trade there. (Hooray for Burnett's wife, I guess.)
It sounds like we may have a stalemate for a couple more days, but I don't see too much incentive for the Bucs to budge.
-P- Also, the Pirates signed third baseman David Valesente out of independent ball. WTM thinks he could start the season at Bradenton. Players like this are generally organizational guys.