U mad, bro?: Ben Roethlisberger, Bob Nutting, Mike Tannenbaum, Tim Benz all feel heat from readers

This edition of “U mad, bro?” looks like Tony Gwynn’s spray chart. Wherever the ball is pitched, it’s a line drive in the other direction.

Ben Roethlisberger, Mike Tannenbaum, Bob Nutting, Jameson Taillon and even … me. We’re all ducking hard line drives back up the middle this week.

So get your gloves ready and be prepared to field your position. A little smoke is coming at us.

We start with Brian. After last week’s Pirates conversation in “U mad, bro?,” he comes out throwing bombs about Pirates owner Bob Nutting.

When the fans and media accept the idea that Nutting just isn't going to spend money, Nutting has won.

— Brian Gierl (@GierlGasMan) August 5, 2021

Well, Brian, it’s always nice to win something, I suppose. For Nutting, this might be as good as it gets.

Skip emailed from Florida. He is upset that I’ve been keeping tabs on the second-half resurgence of former Pirates pitcher Jameson Taillon in some recent “First Call” posts.

Taillon (now with the New York Yankees) was July’s American League Pitcher of the Month. He hasn’t lost a decision since May 31. His ERA is 3.82 after being 5.74 as recently as June 12.

“In today’s First Call you wasted about ⅓ of your column on the successes of x-Pirates (in this case Jameson Taillon). This is a common thread in many of your First Call articles. When I got to that part of your column, I stopped reading it.

My guess is that most of your readers, including myself, don’t give a (darn) about the Pirates, let alone x-Pirates. I suggest that you find something else to write about. Either that or shorten your column.

First of all, there were four entries in that post. Hence, I wasted ¼ of my space. Not ⅓. So your math stinks.

Secondly, I’d argue more people care about ex-Pirates than current Pirates.

And, yes, with the failures of the Pirates (again) in 2021, I admit getting enjoyment from tweaking Bucs fans who insist the never-ending cycle of spinning current players for prospects is the right thing to do.

Over, and over, and over again.

When it comes to Taillon specifically, he is one of the nicest guys I’ve met in baseball. He has endured more bad luck than just about any player I can recall. If he keeps doing well in the Bronx, I’ll write about him after every start if I feel like it.

Finally, it’s “ex-Pirates.” Not “x-Pirates.” The only x-Pirate I can remember was Xavier Nady.

Thom sends an email about ESPN analyst Mike Tannenbaum ripping Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger on numerous occasions.

“Let me just say that I am irate over this idiot Mike Tannenbaum who has absolutely zero accomplishments on his resume to make those kind of ‘b.s.’ evaluations of Ben Roethlisberger’s upcoming ’21 season. Mike Tannenbaum’s record as a general manager is atrocious W-76 and L-84.”

He is a non-athlete with a minor in sports management.

To be accurate, Tannenbaum was 57-55 as GM of the Jets from 2006-12, earning three playoff berths and going to the AFC title game twice, including a conference championship loss against the Steelers at Heinz Field in 2010.

With the Dolphins, he was executive vice president of football operations from 2015-18 and went 29-35 with another playoff loss to the Steelers.

Regardless, he did trade for Tim Tebow and gave a long-term extension to Mark Sanchez in New York, so I see your point.

But even if you think he is an idiot, understand one thing. He’s smart enough to know that there is nothing easier in the world to do as an NFL analyst than to get views, clicks, retweets and reads from overly sensitive Steelers fans who have a hyperbolic reaction every time he mentions Roethlisberger’s name.

He has figured that out, Thom. Maybe the fan base in Pittsburgh should, too, so you can better understand that he is messing with you more than he is messing with Big Ben.

Raymond sends an email about Roethlisberger, too.

“Not doubting that Ben feels he still has something left in the tank to compete. But it’s not an individual sport. The success of the Steelers depends not just on Ben but the other players on the team.

Ben takes a pay cut to play one more year. The offensive line is a new set of starters. Baltimore, Buffalo and Cleveland have a better chance of winning the Super Bowl than the Steelers.

And Ben still wants to play? This has to be about ego.”

Let’s begin by throwing the Kansas City Chiefs onto that list of AFC teams that have a better shot of winning the Super Bowl than the Steelers. Let’s not forget about the team that has won the conference twice in a row.

Maybe even toss the Tennessee Titans into that mix as well.

As for Big Ben, I don’t think it’s fair to characterize his decision to come back at a reduced salary for one more year as “ego.” If “ego” played that big of a role, maybe he balks at the pay cut and dares the Steelers to cut him and turn him over to the open market.

He just wants to keep playing. That’s all. Like you said, he feels like he has something left in the tank and he didn’t want to end a great career losing at home in ugly fashion to the Cleveland Browns in the playoffs.

Now, for some of the reasons you point out, this year’s team may not even make the playoffs.

But Roethlisberger has every right to chase down that goal. And the Steelers — wisely or naively — have every right to bring him back to try.

Finally, James replied to Wednesday’s “First Call” post that asked the question, “How much did Ben Roethlisberger truly consider retirement?”

The answer is “not enough”

— ja.ME.s (ＪΛＭΞＳ) (@SlowFocus) August 11, 2021

You know what? Every now and then, it’s OK to let the reader fire the final shot.

There’s plenty of snark in this world for me to share.