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A.J. Burnett still isn't sure whether he will retire after the season, Karen Price reports.
"I do want to go out with a bang, and I do want to go out a Pirate," said Burnett, who will start Saturday against Cincinnati in the Pirates' second-to-last home game of the regular season.
Burnett said he doesn't have "if...then" scenarios worked out. He has heard advice from people who say to make sure the team has to rip the uniform off you.
"You don't want to go home and regret it, so I see what they mean," said Burnett, who made his major league debut in 1999 with the Marlins. "That's why it's been one start at a time for me. I've been more involved in these guys than myself for that reason, so I don't think about it. Just one day at a time, happy to be here."
Price also says that Burnett is "50-50" about whether he'll retire.
Burnett had previously said that if he played in 2014, it would be as a Pirate, so it appears he won't be the typical free agent on the market this winter. It now appears he might be more inclined to retire if, for example, the Pirates win the World Series, which I think is a tradeoff all of us will take. Anyway, no matter what happens, if Burnett finishes his career as a Pirate, he'll spend the rest of his life as a very, very popular player here.