1. AJ Burnett has visibly changed his pitching mechanics. Last year he had a drastic twist toward second base when he kicked his front leg. This caused him to be inconsistent with the direction of stride (not always toward home plate). Also, by incorporating this twist, his timing had to be perfect with the arm. I think many times he got caught, where the arm would drag and his pitches would flatten out. This spring he has limited these extraneous movements. His delivery looks clean and repeatable, which should translate into more quality strikes. 

2. Before the game against the Astros, I watched Brett Gardner, Curtis Granderson, Ramiro Pena and Greg Golson work for an hour on bunting (sacrifices and bunting for a hit). Although it is early in spring, Gardner still does not look 100% comfortable with this; he still fouls off and pops up way to many pitches. As a fan, it is frustrating that Gardner is not better at bunting. With his plus speed, getting the ball down anywhere in fair territory except back to the pitcher would give him 10-15 additional hits per season. I hope that he is eventually able to develop this skill as it would make him a more complete ballplayer.  Maybe the ghost of Phil Rizzuto will make an appearance in Tampa and show him how it is done.

3. I hate to use a cliche, but the ball does sound different off of the bat of Jesus Montero. The swing is effortless and the ball jumps. As much as I like Francisco Cervelli, I think that Montero will break camp with the Yankees and make the transition from prospect to bona fide big leaguer.