Jim Leyland, Pirates manager Derek Shelton build friendship based on love for the game

There might not be a more interesting job in the city than that of an eavesdropping waiter at Chartiers Country Club. You just need to pick the right day.

Every three weeks — give or take — past and present Pittsburgh Pirates managers Jim Leyland and Derek Shelton will sit down in the dining room, pour hot coffee and talk ball over breakfast.

Leyland said it’s a friendly discussion between two men “talking about something we both enjoy and both love.”

“We talk about baseball, how the club’s doing,” Leyland said. “Once in a while, I’ll ask about a situation, but he doesn’t need any help. We just talk dealing with players and things of that nature.”

The two men got together again Friday at PNC Park, where Leyland, who will be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on July 21, threw out the ceremonial first pitch at the home opener.

Leyland, 79, was insistent that he wanted to throw from the pitcher’s rubber.

“I would be embarrassed to move up,” he said. “I tried to throw against the garage (Friday morning). I’m scheduled for rotator cuff surgery in about two hours.”

The throw short-hopped Shelton, who had the honor of catching the pitch. Nonetheless, it was a special moment with two former minor-league catchers sharing a catch and then a hug.

Their friendship dates to 2020 when Shelton was hired, and Leyland wanted to welcome him to town.

“I was one of those guys many, many years ago that got welcomed here,” said Leyland, who was the Pirates manager from 1986-96. “I wanted to let him know how much he was going to enjoy it, what the city meant to the Pirates and vice versa. I told him it was going to be a good gig for him. He’s become a Pittsburgher real quick.

“I know what he’s going through on a daily basis. The manager’s chair can get a little lonely when things aren’t going too well, but he handles it very well. Your patience does get tested once in a while, and once in a while you get out of character as I did during my career, as Derek has already.”

But that’s OK, Leyland said.

“As long as the heart’s beating the same and you’re on the same page (with those around you), it will always work out,” Leyland said. “Derek does a lot of the things that I tried to do. You try to make the clubhouse a fun place to come to and a great place to work and get that temperature in the clubhouse just right. That’s what you strive for.”

Shelton, 53, said he enjoys a “special friendship” with Leyland, calling him a mentor.

“He still asks me questions about why we’re doing things and how we’re doing things,” Shelton said. “He’s notorious for, ‘I don’t care if you want my opinion, but I’m going to give it to you.’ And he gives it back to me, and it’s beautiful because the way he looks at the game is why he’s in the Hall of Fame.”

Leyland, who has homes in Pittsburgh and Florida, still works for the Detroit Tigers as a special assistant. The Tigers are one of three MLB teams he has managed.

“They don’t really need me, but I give my opinion,” he said.

Leyland said the game has changed over the years, but he is not above embracing the changes.

“I remind everybody: I’m old, but I’m not old school. It’s changed a little bit, but it hasn’t changed for the better or for the worse. It’s still baseball. It’s still about catch it, throw it, hit it and come here every day to beat the other team.”

He did point out that the Pirates’ payroll in 1986 when he was a rookie major-league manager was $10 million.

“That’s a utility player in today’s game, exaggerating a little bit,” he said.

Leyland said he has been working on his Hall of Fame acceptance speech. Only the beginning and end are to his satisfaction. He has several people he wants to thank, but he promises not to overstay his presence on the dais.

“You don’t get to the Hall of Fame alone,” he said. “There will be a lot of fingerprints on my plaque of all the people who have helped me through the years.

“Some of the Hall of Famers have called me already and said it’s the most difficult speech you’ll ever have to make.”

He’ll be joined in this year’s class by Joe Mauer, Adrian Beltre and Todd Helton.

“I’m tagging along,” Leyland said. “I’m sure the crowd is going to be a little more interested in them than they are me.”

Jim Leyland, on the current Pirates: “This is a very talented team.” pic.twitter.com/957Mcq50iE

— Jerry DiPaola (@JDiPaola_Trib) April 5, 2024

Leyland said he roots for the Pirates on days they are not playing the Tigers and believes they are on the right track toward success. Shelton is in his fifth season with the Pirates, the same amount of time it took for Leyland to turn a losing team into a division champion in 1990.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen with this team this year, and it’s certainly none of my business,” Leyland said. “But this is a very talented team. We were like that one time long ago.”