Sports category, Page 636
Penguins fire associate coach Todd Reirden
Marcus Pettersson hijacked the conversation. Not in a malicious or vindictive way. But out of a sense of appreciation. In mid-April, late in the Pittsburgh Penguins’ prematurely ended season, a reporter pointed out to the defenseman that he was enjoying the best season of his seven-year career in part because...
After adjustment period, Pirates counting on improved outfield with Michael A. Taylor in CF
When the Pittsburgh Pirates signed Michael A. Taylor, it was with the intention of adding a pure center fielder with a Gold Glove on his resume to improve their outfield defense. What they got for the first eight games of the season was a player whose bat was better than...
2024 Pittsburgh Marathon facts and figures
The 2024 Dick’s Sporting Good Pittsburgh Marathon will be held Sunday morning in Downtown Pittsburgh. The handcycle division starts Sunday’s events at 6:50 a.m., and the marathon, half-marathon and marathon relay all begin at 7 a.m. The 4-mile fitness challenge will commence at 9:30 a.m. Here are some interesting facts...
First Call: Veteran WR market gets thin for Steelers; was Danny Smith teasing about Justin Fields returning kicks?
In Friday’s “First Call,” are the Pittsburgh Steelers really planning to have Justin Fields return kicks? The pickings are getting slim at wide receiver if general manager Omar Khan is planning to make a move. A former Pitt Panther is getting a look from the Steelers. And No. 66 is...
Penguins A to Z: Sidney Crosby doesn’t need to prove a thing. But he probably still wants toVideo
With the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 2023-24 season coming to an end without any postseason action, the Tribune-Review will offer Penguins A to Z, a player-by-player look at all 51 individuals signed to an NHL contract — including those whose deals do not begin until next season — with the organization, from...
Tim Benz: Steelers’ call on Najee Harris’ option says more about the past than it does the future
There’s no glaring criticism of the future to be made about Thursday’s decision by the Pittsburgh Steelers to decline Najee Harris’ fifth-year option. In either direction. By rejecting the option, if Harris gets hurt or underperforms in 2024, his contract will expire, and they can let him walk and get...
A look at Pirates’ offensive numbers finds little reason for immediate hope
I’m not sure the phrase “swept by the Oakland A’s” really needs much contextualizing, but let’s do that from a Pittsburgh Pirates’ perspective as they return home from a brutal California swing. Not only did the Pirates lose three in a row against the vagabond franchise from Oakland, but they...
Pirates farm report for May 2, 2024: 2 Bradenton pitchers take no-hitter into 9th
INDIANAPOLIS (Triple-A, 16-13) beat Buffalo (Blue Jays), 6-4. LF Billy McKinney went 2 for 4 with a double and a two-run homer, his second of the season. 1B Jake Lamb (.388) went 1 for 3 with a double. DH Canaan Smith-Njigba (.281) went 2 for 4 with a double and...
USGA tees up for 2025 U.S. Open with $4.8M Oakmont Country Club expansion
With the U.S. Open golf tournament returning to Oakmont in just over a year, the United States Golf Association is working to expand and upgrade the Oakmont Country Club in anticipation of massive crowds flocking to the Allegheny Valley borough. The golf association is in the midst of a $4.8...
Matt Wallace takes 1-shot lead at Byron Nelson
McKINNEY, Texas — Matt Wallace was relegated to watching the Masters amid a self-described “terrible” season when he found himself pondering what makes some of the best golfers in the world so good. Asked if Scottie Scheffler was among the players he was watching, Wallace stumbled over his words just...
Tiger Woods gets special exemption to U.S. Open at Pinehurst
Tiger Woods accepted a special exemption for the U.S. Open at Pinehurst No. 2, the first time the three-time champion has needed an exemption to play. Woods has been exempt for every U.S. Open since he first played in 1995 as the reigning U.S. Amateur champion. His five-year exemption from...
Sam Reinhart wants Stanley Cup more than place in Panthers history
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — It has become a running joke with the Florida Panthers. Ask coach Paul Maurice about Sam Reinhart, and he will say something less than glowing about his team’s top goal scorer. These are actual examples: “He’s hard to deal with.” “He’s got a terrible attitude.” “He’s...
Hurricanes’ Rod Brind’Amour feels ‘really good’ about reaching new contract
RALEIGH, N.C. — Carolina Hurricanes coach Rod Brind’Amour said Thursday he feels “really good” that he will reach a new contract with the team, mirroring optimism from president and general manager Don Waddell a day earlier. Brind’Amour — considered by many the face of the franchise with his long-running ties...
Paying college football players could reverse trend of opt-outs in bowl games
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — With the expanded College Football Playoff locked in through 2031, questions still remain about what the rest of the postseason will look like. One thing is certain, there will still be bowls. “College football cannot have a postseason that only provides 12 opportunities,” Nick Carparelli, executive director...
Georgia’s Kirby Smart becomes highest-paid college football coach at $13M annually
ATHENS, Ga. — Georgia’s Kirby Smart agreed to a contract extension Thursday that makes him the highest-paid coach in college football with an annual salary of $13 million. Smart got a bump in salary of $1.75 million annually as part of the deal, which ties him to the Bulldogs through...
For ex-Derby winner Silver Charm, it’s a life of leisure at Kentucky retirement farm
GEORGETOWN, Ky. — Michael Blowen can step outside his house any day of the week and visit retired racehorses at Old Friends, the thoroughbred retirement farm he founded in Kentucky two decades ago that attentively cares for former winners and losers alike. From his home’s backdoor, Blowen can watch one...
Pittsburgh Marathon offers strong tradition, something new
Troy Schooley loves the traditions of the Pittsburgh Marathon, and he also gets excited at new things that take place every year. On Sunday, during the marathon and half marathon through the streets of Downtown, more than 42,000 runners, walkers and hand-cyclists will be joined by a group of athletes...
NHL players refining art of bank shots off goalie masks
Off the goaltender’s mask, off a defenseman’s back, nothing but net. Well, at least in the net. That is how Colorado’s Casey Mittelstadt got his first goal of the NHL playoffs this year, and it is not the only one. Several players have scored by ricocheting the puck in off...
Steelers decline 5th-year options for RB Najee Harris, QB Justin Fields
The Pittsburgh Steelers declined the fifth-year options for running back Najee Harris and quarterback Justin Fields, making them eligible for free agency after the 2024 season. Harris was scheduled to earn $6.97 million in 2025 had the Steelers exercised his option. Fields, who was acquired from the Chicago Bears in...
6th-round pick Logan Lee figures to provide durability, maturity to Steelers D-line
It’s a position group at which the three of the four players who played most often in 2023 will enter this season with an average age of 31.3. Two of those three missed time because of injury; the other has sat out practice regularly in a continued maintenance effort after...
Say hello (again) to EA Sports College Football. The beloved video-game behemoth is back
In a Michigan basement decked out in maize and blue, a father sat with his son. They’d bond over a football video game. One with a story mode that would transport the 7-year-old into a college dorm room, where letters from fans filled his mailbox, the campus newspaper teased a...
‘Pitt Special’ game participants Pitt, UCF plan to get together again in 2026, 2029
The “Pitt Special” no longer will be a surprise, but Pitt and UCF plan to get together again this decade after the schools announced a home-and-home football scheduling agreement Thursday. Pitt will serve as host Sept. 12, 2026, at Acrisure Stadium. The teams will meet again Sept. 15, 2029, in...
Tim Benz: Wilkes-Barre/Scranton job opening could lead to intrigue at NHL level for Penguins as well
On Sunday, the Pittsburgh Penguins announced that they would not renew the contract of AHL head coach J.D. Forrest in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. It didn’t take long for people to start doing some simple calculations as to who may fill that job. A name that was immediately advanced was Sheldon Keefe. Discussion...
Penguins A to Z: Jeff Carter finishes his storyVideo
With the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 2023-24 season coming to an end without any postseason action, the Tribune-Review will offer Penguins A to Z, a player-by-player look at all 51 individuals signed to an NHL contract — including those whose deals do not begin until next season — with the organization, from...
U mad, bro?: Some fans didn’t like the Steelers’ draft (or my opinions on it); ‘ruff’ debut for Pirates’ pup
Despite a draft that has gotten positive reviews, not all Pittsburgh Steelers fans are happy about the organization’s efforts last weekend. Others just didn’t like my coverage of it. We also have some angst over the Steelers’ QB situation, baseball pitch counts and general disdain over how the Pirates “have...
