AJ Burnett

A string of bad luck and unfortunate breaks for the Yankees finally subsided on Sunday afternoon. Ironically, it occurred during the team’s 13^th game of the season.

While Yankees pitcher A.J. Burnett struggled with his curveball all start long, he was able to perform his best Houdini impersonation. Two home runs and seven walks later, the Yankees still only trailed 3-1.

A.J. Burnett was always a thorn in the Yankees' side.

While with Toronto, Burnett continually shut the Yankees down, causing their hitters to look more like a bunch of little leaguers than professionals.

When Burnett chose to become a free agent after the 2008 season, a lot of people thought that the Yankees shouldn't go after him. Burnett has been plagued by a lot of injuries throughout his career. The last thing the Yankees needed was another pitcher with a high probability of landing on the DL.

After A.J. Burnett was roughed up Sunday by the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates in his last spring start, the Yankees coaching staff was looking for answers.

Fans, players, and Yankee employees were seeking a catalyst to explain such a glaring deviance from an otherwise dominant spring.

One of the pretty cool things about Bleacher Report is that so many people look at your work. One of the best features is the editing format, and through the plethora of editors on this site, I have improved my writing skills.

Thanks to all who have helped me along the way.

Another great feature is when your name gets out there, other writers want your opinions on their articles, and even more information gets flowing through my brain.

In a game that may be forgotten before writers' heads hit their pillows tonight, A.J. Burnett showed Boston no spring training mercy.

Consistently pounding the strike zone with an eye-popping breaking ball and a 95 mile-per-hour heater, Burnett made sure that the Red Sox lineup will not sleep quite as soundly.

Boston's socks began to take on a shade of green by the end of Burnett's outing, as they became envious of the Yankees new flamethrower.

With all due respect to the Tampa Bay Rays, the two favorites are finally in the building—the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox.

I feel a little bad about doing this because it's one of the primary reasons people really hate these two franchises—they get all the hype no matter how recent and thunderous their failures.

Boston lost the American League East and the AL Championship Series to Tampa in 2008. New York failed to even qualify for the playoffs. Yet, here I am, touting both as the kings of the hill with no reason except offseason headlines.