With less than a week left in spring training, here are the Pirates whose status has taken a substantial step forward or backward, in my totally arbitrary opinion:
Winners
Nick Burdi, RHP: Apart from the Nightmare, Burdi has been the Pirates’ best reliever this spring. So far: 9.1 IP, 4 H, 3 BB, 13 K. No baserunners in his last four outings. I don’t see how there’s anything left to decide here.
Jung Ho Kang, 3B: Yeah, the Ks are a concern, but Kang has shown the power hasn’t gone anywhere and his fielding has been good.