Yankees trade A.J. Burnett to Pittsburgh

The Yankees agreed Friday to trade maligned pitcher A.J. Burnett to Pittsburgh for two minor leaguers, a deal that clears the way New York to add Raul Ibanez.

Pittsburgh will pay $13 million of the $33-million salary due Burnett for 2012 and 2013, a person familiar with the negotiations said, speaking on condition of anonymity because no announcement has been made.

New York will get 25-year-old right-hander Diego Moreno and 20-year-old outfielder Exicardo Cayones, both low-level prospects.

The agreement is subject to Burnett passing a physical, which probably will take place Sunday. Commissioner Bud Selig also must approve it because of the money involved.

“I think he’s looking forward to the opportunity to reestablish himself and mentor some of the young pitchers,” said Darek Braunecker, Burnett’s agent.

New York intends to use the money saved to sign a designated hitter. The Yankees already have been negotiating a major league contract with Ibanez, who spent the last three seasons with Philadelphia.

He has been waiting for New York to agree to the deal, a person familiar with those negotiations said, also on condition of anonymity. The contract for the 39-year-old outfielder would have a base salary of about $1 million.

New York also hopes to re-sign backup infielder Eric Chavez.

Burnett, a 35-year-old right-hander, was 34-35 with a 4.79 earned-run average during three seasons with New York.

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Tim Wakefield is retiring after pitching the last 17 seasons for the Boston Red Sox. The 45-year-old knuckleballer made the announcement at the team’s spring training facility in Fort Myers, Fla.

After two seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates, the right-hander signed as a minor league free agent in April 1995. He was 186-168 with a 4.43 ERA with the Red Sox. Only Roger Clemens and Cy Young had more wins (192) with the team.

Wakefield is first in team history with 3,006 innings and 430 starts, and second in games and strikeouts.

For his career, Wakefield was 200-180 with a 4.41 ERA.

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The Oakland Athletics still have strong interest in signing Manny Ramirez, who presents a low-risk investment for the rebuilding franchise.

If things come together, the 39-year-old would sign a deal for slightly more than the league minimum of $480,000.

He first must serve a 50-game suspension without pay for violating baseball’s drug policy for the second time. With no rainouts, the first game Ramirez would be eligible to play in is June 2 at Kansas City.

ETC.

Crosby still has concussion symptoms

Sidney Crosby joined his Pittsburgh Penguins teammates on the ice for the first time in more than two months, but the star center said he remains bothered by concussion symptoms.

The 24-year-old has not played since the symptoms returned after a loss to Boston on Dec. 5 and has not been cleared for contact. He called the session with his teammates a matter of convenience because of a lack of ice availability at a suburban Pittsburgh rink.

Though he said he is “getting better,” Crosby stressed he will remain sidelined while the symptoms linger.

“It’s pretty clear cut,” he said. “There is no gray area. Either you’re symptom-free and can move on to contact, or you’re not. I feel like I’m progressing, but not ready to take a hit yet.”

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Purdue kicked guard Kelsey Barlow off the men’s basketball team and suspended swingman D.J. Byrd for a pivotal late-season game after an early-morning incident at a bar.

Lt. Gary Sparger of the West Lafayette, Ind., police said officers were called to a bar near the Purdue campus just before 3 a.m. after a disturbance. Barlow and Byrd were there when police arrived.

Police are investigating an allegation that Byrd assaulted one of the bar’s bouncers. Sparger said Barlow had been kicked out of the bar earlier that night, then told bar staff he had left his wallet inside but was not allowed back in.

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Mike Leach’s attorney vowed to keep fighting after the Texas Supreme Court rejected the former Texas Tech football coach’s appeal in his wrongful termination lawsuit against the school. The court issued its decision without comment more than two years after Leach was fired by the university amid allegations that he mistreated a player with a concussion.

The player, Adam James, is the son of Craig James, a former Southern Methodist star and ESPN broadcaster who now is a Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Texas. Leach denied the allegation and later sued the school, saying he suspects an $800,000 bonus he was due the day after his 2009 firing was behind his dismissal. He was recently hired as the coach at Washington State.

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Larry Mize shot a 10-under-par 62 and had the first-round lead in the Champions Tour’s ACE Group Classic at Naples, Fla.

Mize eagled No. 17 and birdied the 18th to finish his round. Tom Lehman, Kenny Perry and Russ Cochran are close behind after each shot 64. Mike Goodes, who won the qualifier Tuesday and was partnered with Mize, is fifth after a 65.

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J.R. Smith said he is joining the New York Knicks, reuniting with former Denver teammate Carmelo Anthony to provide more scoring punch. Though the team said there was no deal yet, Smith wrote “New York Knicks it is!” Friday morning on his Twitter account.

Smith signed in China during the lockout and was ineligible to return to the NBA until his team’s season was finished there. The Knicks can’t reach a deal with him until his return is cleared by FIBA, basketball’s international governing body. Smith had been courted by several teams, including the Clippers and Lakers.

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Top-seeded Roger Federer beat Jarkko Nieminen, 7-5, 7-6 (2), extending his record against the Finn to 13-0 and reach the semifinals of the ABN Amro World Tennis at Rotterdam, Netherlands. Federer will next face Nikolay Davydenko, who defeated Richard Gasquet, 7-5, 6-3.

Third-seeded Juan Martin Del Potro reached the semifinals with a 6-0, 6-1 win over seventh-ranked Viktor Troicki. Del Potro will play second-seeded Tomas Berdych, who beat Andreas Seppi, 6-3, 6-4.

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U.S. Open champion Sam Stosur reached her first semifinal of the year, defeating Monica Niculescu, 6-2, 2-6, 6-3, at the Qatar Open in Doha.

In another quarterfinal, top-ranked Victoria Azarenka swept aside Yanina Wickmayer, 6-0, 6-4. Azarenka next plays Agnieszka Radwanska, who beat Christina McHale, 6-1, 6-1. Stosur will next face fifth-seeded Marion Bartoli, who defeated Lucie Safarovac, 7-5, 4-6, 6-1.

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Former Oakland Raiders coach Hue Jackson was hired by the Cincinnati Bengals and will be an assistant coach helping with the secondary and special teams.