Pittsburgh or bust.
A.J. Burnett could retire after this season and if he does continue pitching it would only be for the Pirates, the 36-year-old righty told the Pittsburgh Tribune Review. Burnett won a World Series with the Yankees in 2009, but was abysmal the following two years before he was dealt to the Pirates.
“I enjoy it here and I enjoy these guys,” Burnett told the paper. “If I was to keep playing, I wouldn’t want it to be anywhere else but Pittsburgh. My wife and I talk about it now and then. But it’s something I’ve got to put on the back burner. I’m just going to concentrate on this season, one start at a time.”
Burnett did sign a five-year, $82.5 million deal with the Yankees before the 2009 season and the Yankees are still paying a majority of his contract. In his first year with the Pirates Burnett was revitalized going 16-10 with a 3.51 ERA.
“I know it’s going to come up,” Burnett said. “These guys (teammates) keep getting on me about it. They keep saying, ‘Two more (years)! Two more!’ I don’t know. We’ll see.”
Burnett added, “It’s a family thing. My kids are 9 and 12 now. I’m sure if I mention retiring to them, they’d say, ‘No, keep playing.’ But … I don’t know.”