Sports category, Page 1988
Tim Benz: Patchwork Pirates, odd MLB season deliver as advertised over first weekend
The first weekend of Major League Baseball in the coronavirus era was exactly as advertised — not just for the local team but league-wide. From an MLB perspective, viewers across the country quickly got used to cardboard cutout fans, manufactured crowd noise and runners beginning extra innings at second base....
Mark Madden on Sidney Crosby’s status: ‘Since they won’t tell us, I assume there is potential worry’
As the Penguins head to the Toronto hub for the NHL playoffs, two major questions hang over the franchise. How healthy, really, is Sidney Crosby? And who will be the starting goaltender? Well, who will be the starting goaltender by the end of the postseason, at least? Mark Madden and...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Pirates manager Derek Shelton had a ‘pretty good’ day with first win
Derek Shelton entered the Zoom room for the postgame interview following the Pittsburgh Pirates’ 5-1 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals, his first win as a major-league manager, shook his soaking-wet silver hair and slicked it back. “How was your guys’ day?” Shelton said. “Mine was pretty good.” The first...
Penguins are prepared for bad ice in Toronto
Hockey players and coaches are rarely hesitant to say if the ice they’re playing on is crisp or sloppy. At the same time, they’re usually quick to follow any negative feedback on the subject with the standard qualifier of, “Both teams play on it.” But what about when a dozen...
Penguins’ postseason roster announced
The Penguins’ postseason roster has been announced. It includes 31 players: Forwards (17): Anthony Angello, Zach Aston-Reese, Teddy Blueger, Sidney Crosby, Jake Guentzel, Patric Hornqvist, Adam Johnson, Sam Lafferty, Evgeni Malkin, Patrick Marleau, Jared McCann, Evan Rodrigues, Bryan Rust, Conor Sheary, Brandon Tanev, Phil Varone, Jason Zucker Defensemen (10): Kevin...
New York hands Riverhounds second loss of the week on late penalty kick
Bob Lilley teams don’t generally lose two games in a row, but on Sunday night the New York Red Bulls II handed the Riverhounds their second straight loss with a late penalty kick in stoppage time. New York was pressing in the 94th minute and a pass came in to...
Western Amateur next for golfers Schmidt, Jackson
Connor Schmidt and Palmer Jackson will head West on Monday to play in the prestigious Western Amateur at Crooked Stick Golf Club in Carmel, Ind. The site of the event is where John Daly became a household name when he won the 1991 PGA Championship. Schmidt finished fourth last week...
West Point Little League reaches $500 donation for scoreboard project
State Farm Insurance recently gave all its agents $500 to donate to a charity or an organization of their choice because of the coronavirus. Matt Knizner, an agent in Hempfield Township, decided to donate his $500 to the West Point Little League. The donation, said West Point president Tom Rennie,...
John Steigerwald: NBA should be sending more than one message during playoffs
It’s time the NBA woke up. Its bubble season starts Thursday, and the league has made it clear the presentation is going to be as much about promoting Black Lives Matter as it is about basketball. Those words will be painted on the court, and the players will have the...
Pair of Browns players put on covid-19 reserve listVideo
Cleveland Browns running back Dontrell Hilliard and safety Jovante Moffatt were placed on the NFL’s reserve/covid-19 list before training camp opened. The team announced the moves Sunday night. Cleveland’s veterans are scheduled to report Tuesday to the training facility in Berea, Ohio. Hilliard has played in 25 games for Cleveland...
Pirates plan for Gregory Polanco to start out as designated hitter when he returns to playing
When Gregory Polanco returns to the Pittsburgh Pirates’ lineup, the right fielder likely first will be used as a designated hitter. Pirates manager Derek Shelton said that’s the plan for Polanco, who has been working out at PNC Park this weekend after being cleared to return from a positive covid-19...
Michael Thompson wins 3M Open by 2 strokes in MinnesotaVideo
BLAINE, Minn. — Michael Thompson birdied two of the last three holes Sunday for a 4-under-par 67 and a two-stroke victory in the 3M Open, finishing off his second PGA Tour win seven years after his first. Adam Long took second after a 64. Richy Werenski, who shared the lead...
Pirates pitcher JT Brubaker shares a special moment with Derek Shelton in MLB debut
The magnitude of the moment of his major league debut didn’t cross JT Brubaker’s mind until he set foot on the infield dirt at Busch Stadium to face the St. Louis Cardinals. “As soon as I stepped on it, it hit me: the adrenaline, the nerves, the excitement, everything that...
Astros’ Verlander out at least two weeks with forearm strainVideo
HOUSTON — Reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander has a strained right forearm and will be shut down for at least two weeks. Astros manager Dusty Baker announced the injury after Houston’s 7-6 loss to the Mariners on Sunday. Baker denied a report that said the injury would...
AMS club swimmers earn All-American status
Allegheny Mountain Swimming recently announced its swimmers who earned scholastic All-American honors for the 2018-19 academic year based on requirements set by USA Swimming. The All-American recognition combines the swimmer’s accomplishments in the pool for his or her club programs as well as achievements in the classroom. To make the...
Trump says he won’t throw out first pitch at Yankees game
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump won’t be throwing out the first pitch at Yankee Stadium next month after all. Trump tweeted Sunday that he won’t be able to make the trip because of his “strong focus” on the coronavirus, vaccines and the economy. Trump said in the tweet: “We will...
Tim Benz: You have to laugh at Le’Veon Bell’s rant against former teammate
I’m not sure how good of an arm former Steelers running back Le’Veon Bell has, but I bet he could spin a decent halfback-option pass or two for the New York Jets if needed. After Saturday, though, I am sure he can throw stones from a glass house. Over the...
Steelers 2020 training camp preview: Breaking down the defense
Defensive linemen (12) 97 Cameron Heyward, 6-5, 295: After not starting until his third season, is Heyward quietly carving one of the all-time best careers for a Steelers defensive lineman? He’s been first-team All Pro two of the past three seasons, totaling 29 sacks in that time. 91 Stephon Tuitt,...
Pirates win eventful game for Derek Shelton’s 1st victoryVideo
The Pittsburgh Pirates debuted their gray road uniforms with “Pittsburgh” in cursive across the chest, classic throwbacks to the early 1990s, and that wasn’t even the most prominent script change Sunday. Derek Shelton shuffled the starting lineup, a move the Pirates manager insisted was scripted before the start of the...
John Chayka steps down as Arizona GM a week before qualifierVideo
GLENDALE, Ariz. — Arizona general manager John Chayka, once the youngest GM in major North American sports history, earned a contract extension early this season for building the Coyotes into playoff contenders in four short years. He was being called a quitter by the team in a strongly worded statement...
Mike Ditka rips kneeling athletes: ‘Get the hell out of the country’Video
Former NFL legend and Pitt Panther Mike Ditka has some unkind words for athletes and coaches who kneel for the national anthem. In an interview with TMZ Sports about his women’s pro football X League, Ditka was asked if his players would be allowed to do it. He gave an...
Steelers 2020 training camp preview: Breaking down special teams
9 K Chris Boswell, 6-2, 185 If you take away his disastrous 2018, Boswell has been among the most accurate and consistent kickers in the NFL since the Steelers signed him in 2015. Whatever the issues that caused his 12 missed kicks two years ago seemed to disappear last year....
College basketball stuck in holding pattern during pandemic
Baseball has begun its coronavirus-delayed season with limited long-distance travel and no fans in the stands. The NBA has its Disney World bubble. The NHL will have two bubbles, in Toronto and Edmonton. NFL rookies began reporting to training facilities last week as teams build up toward the start of...
Personal matter delays Victor Hedman traveling to NHL’s bubbleVideo
Tampa Bay Lightning defenseman Victor Hedman won’t travel with the team to the NHL’s Eastern Conference “secure zone” in Toronto because of a personal matter. General manager Julien BriseBois said Hedman will go from his home to the rink and back and avoid the general public in Florida this week...
Ex-Penguins forward Eddie Shack dies at 83Video
Eddie Shack, one of the most colorful characters in NHL history who spent parts of two seasons with the Penguins in the early 1970s, died following a bout with cancer. He was 83. His death was announced by the Toronto Maple Leafs. A native of Sudbury, Ontario, Shack had a...
