Sports category, Page 701
Penguins place Bryan Rust on injured reserve, recall then return Jonathan Gruden
The Pittsburgh Penguins placed forward Bryan Rust on injured reserve Thursday afternoon, several hours ahead of their 10 p.m. puck drop in Seattle vs. the Kraken. In a related transaction, fellow forward Jonathan Gruden was recalled from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the American Hockey League. Shortly before the start of Thursday’s game...
Tim Benz: Art Rooney II and Steelers must do better, but fans should take NFLPA grades with a huge grain of salt
The Pittsburgh Steelers, specifically team owner Art Rooney II, are taking a beating when it comes to the release of the 2024 NFL Players Association report cards. As posted by our Joe Rutter Wednesday, the Steelers ranked No. 28 overall out of 32 teams in a survey of 1,706 players....
Stacy Wakefield dies less than 5 months after her husband, World Series champion Tim Wakefield
Stacy Wakefield, the widow of former Boston Red Sox and Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher and two-time World Series champion Tim Wakefield, has died. Her family said in a statement released through the Red Sox that she died Wednesday at her Massachusetts home, less than five months after her husband died at...
Longtime play-by-play man Bill Hillgrove retires from Steelers
A man known for exquisite preparation in his professional dealings, Bill Hillgrove didn’t necessarily plan for Thursday to play out the way it did. But it was impossible not to recognize how perfectly fitting the way the day in which Hillgrove announced his partial retirement was going to end. “I’m...
U mad, bro?: Backhanded compliments, slaps to the face, fears of Pittsburgh teams slipping into the 1980s
Have you ever heard the phrase “backhanded compliments”? This week’s “U mad, bro?” hits me with a couple of those backhands right across the face. Mark Madden gets one too. So do the Pittsburgh Steelers’ quarterbacks and Penguins coach Mike Sullivan. At least I’m in good company. Let’s start with...
First Call: Steelers’ minority ownership movement; ILBs interview with team at combine; Mason Rudolph’s future
The Pittsburgh Steelers’ ownership structure is getting shuffled. The franchise is talking to lots of linebackers at the NFL Scouting Combine. There’s more conversation about Mason Rudolph’s future and that of former Pitt star Aaron Donald as well. All that in Thursday’s “First Call.” Money movin’ The long-discussed sale of...
Big plays from Erik Karlsson something for Penguins to ‘get excited about’
When Penguins president of hockey operations Kyle Dubas pulled off a three-team, nine-player trade to acquire defenseman Erik Karlsson in August, he probably had nights like Tuesday in mind. The Penguins were looking to complete a comeback on the road against the Pacific Division-leading Vancouver Canucks when Karlsson alertly kept...
Speedy Ji Hwan Bae learning benefits of slowing it down in field, at plate for Pirates
BRADENTON, Fla. — Where Ji Hwan Bae attracted attention for his speed as a rookie for the Pittsburgh Pirates, whether it was stealing bases or chasing down fly balls, he is learning the benefits of slowing down. The Pirates had Bae split time between second base and center field last...
Minor league report: Nailers shut out by Royals
Taylor Gauthier made 19 saves on 23 shots for the Wheeling Nailers in a 4-0 road loss to the Reading Royals at Santander Arena in Reading on Wednesday. The result dropped Gauthier’s record to 20-14-1 as Wheeling (30-20-1-1) was shut out for the second time this season. Highlights: Earlier in...
Robert Morris falls to Northern Kentucky in final home game
As the regular season comes to a close, Robert Morris’ position within the 11-member Horizon League is solidified heading into the upcoming conference tournament. The Colonials (10-20, 6-13) will be the league’s No. 9 seed when the tournament begins March 5. Given that circumstance, not much was on the table...
Second-half surge leads Duquesne to 75-63 victory against La Salle
After Duquesne’s 75-63 victory Wednesday night against La Salle, coach Keith Dambrot opened the door to his team’s locker room. Not literally, but his postgame remarks offered insight into how the Dukes rallied from a three-point halftime deficit to begin the second half on a game-deciding 17-4 run. Was there...
Former GCC track star Corinn Brewer working to bring women’s decathlon to the Olympics
Decathlete Corinn Brewer is working to change the Olympics. A lofty sounding goal? Yes. But not to the former Greensburg Central Catholic track and field standout who is a first-year multi-event athlete and pole vaulter at Lehigh. Brewer is pushing for the games to add the women’s decathlon, an event...
Tsung-Che Cheng flashes power with 2-run homer, but Tigers rally past Pirates
BRADENTON, Fla. — Tsung-Che Cheng didn’t join the Pittsburgh Pirates at spring training last year because he was playing for his native Taiwan in the World Baseball Classic. When the 22-year-old shortstop the Pirates call “Z” saw his name in the starting lineup against the Detroit Tigers, Cheng had a...
Former WWE, WCW wrestler Virgil, a Wilkinsburg native, dies at 61
Professional wrestling is all about characters and stories — two things Mike Jones is associated with under his wrestling personas. Jones, born in Wilkinsburg and a Pittsburgh area resident most of his life, died Wednesday morning at age 61, according to WWE. Information had been public since 2022 about his...
Steelers slammed in NFLPA survey about working conditions, team facilities
INDIANAPOLIS — Pittsburgh Steelers players like the working environment created by head coach Mike Tomlin but don’t think much of ownership or the way their families are being treated on game days. That was the takeaway from the NFL Players Association’s second annual team report card that was released Tuesday...
Goaltending tandems like the Penguins’ Tristan Jarry and Alex Nedeljkovic are the norm
Patrick Roy doesn’t know why goaltenders don’t routinely play more than 60 games — or even 70 — a season these days. But he knows exactly how he would feel if he didn’t get such a workload were he still strapping on the pads in today’s NHL. “Good question,” Roy...
Analysis: Pitt must set sights on strong finish, even if it includes a berth in the NIT
Pitt is in the grip of a slump, if that’s the correct term for losing two of three games at a point in the season that matters most. The Panthers’ NCAA Tournament hopes, already slim before the 69-62 loss at Clemson on Tuesday night, have all but disappeared. Blame Pitt’s...
Mark Madden: Liverpool FC’s Carabao Cup victory will remain my most vivid sports memory
I’ve attended Super Bowl XXX, two World Series, five Stanley Cup finals, Mario Lemieux’s comeback game in 2000, Pitt-Penn State football and several Pittsburgh Condors games. I’ve seen Neil O’Donnell disappoint, Roberto Clemente dazzle, Lemieux score with 13 seconds left, Jaromir Jagr perform heroically on one leg and John Brisker...
FedEx ends naming rights agreement for the Washington Commanders stadium long known as FedEx Field
FedEx has ended its naming rights agreement to the Washington Commanders stadium in Landover, Maryland, a venue that had been known as FedEx Field since 1999. The move confirmed Wednesday comes two years prior to the expiration of the current agreement scheduled for 2026, and as the NFL club under...
Tim Benz: Victory in Vancouver may be Penguins’ win of the year. But is the season too far gone for Kyle Dubas?
The Penguins’ overtime victory over the Vancouver Canucks had a ton of memorable moments. • The Pens overcame a 2-0 deficit (and some shaky penalty calls) in the first period. • The usually repugnant power play scored on a five-on-three, only to yield a shorthanded goal to J.T. Miller during...
Paul Skenes to make 1st Grapefruit League start for Pirates at Orioles on Thursday
BRADENTON, Fla. — Paul Skenes knew he was making his Grapefruit League debut Thursday against the Baltimore Orioles but, beyond that, the right-hander wasn’t aware that he was facing 2021 NL Cy Young Award winner Corbin Burnes and the top prospect in baseball in shortstop Jackson Holliday. After throwing two...
With Mitch Trubisky, Mason Rudolph, Joe Flacco, Steelers and Browns may impact each other on the QB carousel
The Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns are inexorably linked as AFC North rivals. This offseason, there may be some linkage when it comes to their quarterback situations as well. After winning the 2023 NFL Comeback Player of the Year award with the Browns, quarterback Joe Flacco and the franchise have...
First Call: Ravens GM praises former player who joined Steelers; an Arthur Smith favorite hits free agency
Wednesday’s “First Call” checks in on a popular name among Steelers fans as free agency approaches. A player Arthur Smith had in Atlanta and Tennessee has been cut loose. The Ravens’ general manager may have a franchise tag target. He is also praising a former player who has been scooped...
Quinn Priester searches for consistency in hopes of securing spot in Pirates’ rotation
BRADENTON, Fla. — When Quinn Priester wasn’t getting the results he wanted with the Pittsburgh Pirates, he sought confirmation of a time when his fastball command and velocity weren’t issues. The 23-year-old right-hander found it by returning to the minor leagues, both physically and mentally. Deflated by a mid-August demotion,...
Payton Sandfort’s triple-double propels Iowa to victory over Penn State
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Payton Sandfort finished with 26 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists for his first triple-double and Iowa breezed to a 90-81 victory over Penn State on Tuesday night. Sandfort, a junior, made 3 of 11 shots with two 3-pointers and 18 of 19 free throws for...
