Sports category, Page 2181
Pirates sign catcher John Ryan Murphy to minor-league contract
The catcher’s position was an offseason concern for the Pittsburgh Pirates, especially after they decided not to bring back Elias Diaz. The new management team addressed that personnel shortage by signing two free-agent catchers, including the most recent addition, John Ryan Murphy, 28. He signed a minor-league contract and will...
RB Kerrith Whyte shows worth to Steelers sought him, but will he be back in 2020?Video
The first time Kerrith Whyte carried the ball in an NFL regular-season game, he showed burst and ran 21 yards. It was the longest run of his rookie season, but it provided a glimpse of what Whyte can provide if deployed under the right circumstances. It also provided enough justification...
Tim Benz: Marcus Weathers a huge reason for Duquesne’s hot start
Here’s what Saint Louis University basketball coach Travis Ford said about Duquesne forward Marcus Weathers before the two teams tipped off Jan. 2. “I think Weathers has developed into one of the best players in the Atlantic 10,” Ford said. “He’s turned into an elite player. He gives you a...
From big-time Alabama recruit to the AAF to the Steelers, J.C. Hassenauer carving out role
Did a season that went from Iron to Steel provide J.C. Hassenauer with enough mettle to make it over the long term in the NFL? An interior offensive lineman who was part of a national championship team at Alabama, Hassenauer began last year as property of the Alliance of American...
Fantasy football industry looking into NFL Wild Card Weekend controversy
Controversy during last week’s NFL Wild Card Weekend wasn’t limited to pass-interference debates and arguments over the overtime format. No, it bled into the fantasy football world as well, courtesy of two former reality TV stars. A pair of alumni from “The Bachelor” and “The Bachelorette” — Jade Roper Tolbert...
Tim Benz: Penguins GM Jim Rutherford is right to look for trade after Jake Guentzel’s injury
Penguins general manager Jim Rutherford stopped short of saying the Penguins would definitely make a trade to offset the loss of All-Star winger Jake Guentzel. Not by much, though. Speaking on his 105.9 the X radio show Wednesday night, Rutherford sounded like a GM well-aware of what he had lost....
After signing with Chicago Bears, Pitt product J.P. Holtz looks ahead to NFL future
When the call came, J.P. Holtz didn’t hesitate to get his things packed. The Shaler Area and Pitt graduate was released by the Washington Redskins in early September and was scrambling to try to catch on with the Chicago Bears a few days later. “It was pretty crazy,” Holtz said....
Bishop Canevin grad Shamyjha Price making progress at UMass LowellVideo
Clueless. That was among the words UMass Lowell women’s basketball coach Tom Garrick used to describe freshman Shamyjha Price. But wait … Price, unprompted, used the same word to describe herself. Garrick wasn’t insulting the Bishop Canevin grad. Price wasn’t down on herself, nor resorting to self-deprecating humor. The term...
North Allegheny grads Ehling, McGrath make impact for Princeton swimming
North Allegheny graduate John Ehling has been a pleasant surprise as a freshman on the Princeton men’s swimming team. “He’s developing into a solid distance swimmer,” Tiger coach Matt Crispino said. “We expect he’ll make some big contributions down the stretch.” Crispino said Ehling, the WPIAL Class AAA silver medalist...
North Allegheny grad plays starring role for Gannon water polo team
North Allegheny alum Drago Marjanovic gave Gannon men’s water polo an added boost after being named varsity Division II All-America by the Association of Collegiate Water Polo Coaches. Marjanovic, 20, was one of eight players tabbed for the first team. “He is an international student and only a sophomore,” said...
Avalanche coach Jared Bednar learned from “Battleship” Kelly
After toiling for parts of 14 seasons in the ECHL and AHL as a coach, Jared Bednar finally reached the NHL when the Colorado Avalanche hired him to be coach during the 2016 offseason. In his three full seasons as coach, the Avalanche has improved from a non-playoff team to...
Giants coach Joe Judge, old-fashioned at 38, wants blue-collar teamVideo
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Joe Judge has every intention of bringing old-fashioned, blue-collar football back to the struggling New York Giants. Roughly three minutes after being introduced as coach of the Giants, the relative unknown 38-year-old disciple of two of football’s coaching greats set out to answer the question of...
Ravens, Lamar Jackson launch playoff run against underdog TitansVideo
BALTIMORE — Containing Lamar Jackson has been virtually impossible for opposing defenses this season, and now the task falls on the Tennessee Titans to find a way to slow down a versatile quarterback who is equally adept at running the ball and throwing downfield. “Other than try to tie his...
Steelers’ Ben Roethlisberger funding Sacramento’s next police K-9Video
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger awarded a grant to the Sacramento Police Department that has allowed it to add a dog to its K-9 unit. Though Roethlisberger was sidelined this season with an elbow injury, he pledged to distribute grants toward the K-9 units of police and...
Time is now to plant habitat for favorite wildlife speciesVideo
As New York Yankees great Yogi Berra once said, “It’s getting late early.” The Hall of Fame catcher was talking baseball, not wildlife. But if you’re thinking about offering food and cover for your favorite species, the words still apply. In short, it’s time to think about planting for the...
Pennsylvania’s bear check-station system could be tweakedVideo
Over the past few years, Pennsylvania’s wildlife managers devoted a lot of time to getting a handle on the state’s burgeoning black bear population. They plan to spend the next few getting a handle on that handle. The Pennsylvania Game Commission estimated bear numbers going into this past fall at...
An exhaustive outdoor show calendar to keep busy over winterVideo
Cabin fever, schmabin fever. Brother, if you can’t get your outdoor fix over the next three months, you just ain’t tryin. Yes, it’s true the most popular hunting seasons are over. And yes, the most popular fishing ones are a ways off. We even admit the weather this time of...
Positive reviews for pair of inline muzzleloadersVideo
The timing was right, even if the results weren’t. Going into fall, Pennsylvania adopted its first muzzleloader season for black bears. It overlapped with an antlerless deer season in mid-October, a wonderful time to be in the woods because of the weather, the color and the peace, relative to the...
NFL doctor calls Eagles’ Carson Wentz ‘heroic’ for reporting concussionVideo
PHILADELPHIA — The NFL’s chief medical officer called Carson Wentz “heroic” for reporting his concussion during Philadelphia’s playoff loss and disputed the notion the league’s system failed the Eagles quarterback. “I think what Carson Wentz did is heroic and should be highlighted as an example of how an unbelievably skilled...
Robert Morris men’s basketball cruises past St. Francis BrooklynVideo
Andy Toole has been at Robert Morris long enough to remember when people didn’t return his phone calls. That was when he was an assistant under Mike Rice, and the program was just starting to carve out a niche in the world of college basketball. Now, as he wades through...
Penguins notebook: Sidney Crosby gets scheduled day off practiceVideo
DENVER — With Sidney Crosby joining the Pittsburgh Penguins on their road trip, which commenced Tuesday night at Las Vegas, continues Friday against Colorado and wraps Sunday at Arizona, there had been speculation the injured captain is nearing a return to the lineup. Crosby, who has missed 26 games since...
Penguins forward Andrew Agozzino more than ready for call-ups
DENVER — Earlier this week, the Pittsburgh Penguins recalled forward Andrew Agozzino from Wilkes-Barre to provide offensive depth before a three-game road swing at Las Vegas, Colorado and Arizona. Agozzino, who shortly before being called up was named to the AHL All-Star Game, is Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s leading scorer with 31 points...
2 WPIAL football realignment proposals would cut down on travel
WPIAL football teams will play games closer to home next season, one way or another. The WPIAL revealed two football realignment options Wednesday night, one that keeps the current six-classification format and another that would change things drastically. But either option would eliminate many of the long bus rides schools...
John Beilein says he apologized for ‘thugs’ comment about CavsVideo
DETROIT — Cleveland Cavaliers coach John Beilein said Thursday he has apologized after using the word “thugs” during a film session with his players the previous day. ESPN.com, citing unidentified sources, reported that Beilein suggested during a Wednesday film session his players were no longer playing “like a bunch of...
Pirates sign former Tampa Bay outfielder Guillermo Heredia
The Pittsburgh Pirates started shoring up their outfield depth Thursday — and perhaps preparing for a trade of center fielder Starling Marte — when they signed light-hitting Guillermo Heredia to a one-year contract. General manager Ben Cherington announced the signing Thursday evening. Heredia, a four-year veteran who will turn 29...
