Around the Empire: Yankees news - 2/28/22

Associated Press | Ronald Blum: With one day left to negotiate before regular season games are lost, there is still no deal to end the lockout. Sunday’s meetings stretched on longer in the day and were (as far as we know) less acrimonious then Saturday’s, but there was still too much ground to cover, apparently. Though the talks were productive, according to MLB, it would be a surprise to see a deal on Monday considering the issues still to work out. Baseball looks a ways away.

New York Daily News | Sarah Valenzuela: MLB Network’s Jon Heyman raised more than a few eyebrows before Sunday’s MLB-MLBPA negotiations began by tweeting that a deal could be close — a pretty surprising take given that Saturday’s talks apparently ended with the players absolutely furious and considering walking away from the table entirely. Zack Britton clearly disagreed, as he flatly replied that Heyman was incorrect, leading to a pretty lame backtrack from Heyman. Britton joins Gerrit Cole as Yankees involved in the negotiations in Florida.

NJ.com | Randy Miller: Josh Breaux is a catcher in the Yankees’ minor league system who finished last season with Double-A Somerset. The team’s 18th-ranked prospect, according to MLB.com, Breaux could be on the verge of his major league debut if he continues to hit with power the way he has been. However, he’s also eligible to be picked in the Rule 5 Draft, should it take place. Although a team may not want to have to keep an unproven catcher on their roster, his potential could lead to him being picked, or possibly eventually taking over should Gary Sánchez leave as a free agent. Breaux discusses his hitting and defense as a catcher, as well as some personal tidbits.