Beaver County Times, April 19, 2015

The NFL draft is nearly upon us, and teams are fretting over the young men they'll make instant millionaires.
Make the wrong choice with a prime pick, and it can set a team back for years. (Hello, Browns!)
There's more to consider than just on-field performance, although the ability to win football games can trump a lot of faults. Character issues are bigger than ever, especially with the number of NFL players being photographed in handcuffs and jumpsuits.
Aaron Hernandez, 25, was a star tight end with the always-successful Patriots. Now he's headed to prison for life with no hope of parole, and he still has another murder trial pending. Never mind that the Patriots got three good seasons out of him as a fourth-round draft pick. That life sentence reality negates the good part.
Now there's a debate about how much the Patriots knew about Hernandez's character and, presumably, the chances he might be prone to commit a capital crime (or two).
Suddenly, Le'Veon Bell's getting popped for an illegal post-practice smoke doesn't seem like the worst thing in the world.
That's the dilemma for the NFL. The coaches and evaluators sit in darkened rooms watching game tapes. They see talented players making one-handed catches and running through defenders or destroying offenses. They see difference-making players who can help win a lot of games.
But when the lights come on, they see the part of the scouting report that spells out that gifted player is also trouble, a time bomb with a hair-trigger temper and a violent streak that sometimes rages out of control.
Is the talent too good too pass up, or are the character issues too profound to take the risk?
Teams do personal interviews with possible draft picks. They gather as much information as they can about players, including off-the-field habits and associations.
A lot of teams are compiling a dossier on quarterback Jameis Winston, who is entering the draft after just two seasons at Florida State. Among the items on his record is a civil suit by a former classmate accusing him of sexual battery.
Good quarterbacks are always scarce, so they can represent especially tough calls. Your grandmother knew Johnny Manziel was on the standby list for a trip to rehab, but the Browns still took him and guaranteed him almost $7 million.
The scrutiny on Winston is so intense that one of his coaches claimed an unnamed NFL team put a spy on the plane Winston rode home from the NFL Scouting Combine. The idea, apparently, was to see him react to real-life situations.
But how should those be interpreted? If he takes too much of the arm rest, does that show he's aggressive (good) or selfish (bad)? Would an extended game of in-flight peek-a-boo with a toddler show that he's patient (good) or easily distracted (bad)? If he doesn't read the safety instruction folder, is it because he memorized it from the inbound flight (good), or just doesn't care (bad)?
Athletes under surveillance isn't new. In the 1950s, the Yankees won the pennant every year and partied like a mobile frat house. The FBI actually kept files on them for eight years. When Mickey Mantle boldly suggested his salary should be doubled in advance of the 1956 season, the GM of the Yankees quietly reminded The Mick it would be a shame if those photographs of him with a bevy of women on the road found their way into Mrs. Mantle's hands.  Mantle adjusted his contract demands.
The FBI doesn't have to watch athletes today. Everyone carries a camera and can instantly post pictures or video on the Internet. A lot of people do.
With all that evidence out there, makes you wonder how teams still waste draft picks.
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--NEW BOSS
The new program director at 93.7 The Fan (KDKA-FM) is Jim Graci, who moves over from the same job at KDKA-AM.
Graci used to program ESPN 1250, so perhaps he'd be interested in shaking up The Fan by adding some of his former talent. Tim Benz went to Boston a while back, but might be interested in returning to Pittsburgh for a major role.
Stan Savran wouldn't seem to be a likely candidate. At 68 and with an old school style honed over nearly 40 years in the market, he doesn't fit the demographic The Fan profitably chases.

Beaver County Times, April 12, 2015

Turns out gambling in baseball is OK after all.
Neal Huntington wagered at least $27 million of the Pirates' money on his belief that Josh Harrison will maintain his value as a regular player for at least three more seasons.
This also comes with side bets that prospects Josh Bell and Alen Hanson will be ready to step in as low-cost replacements for Pedro Alvarez and Neil Walker within two years.
That's the way things have to be done these days. Clubs are always looking for pre-emptive contracts that will work out as well as the one the Pirates have with Andrew McCutchen.
McCutchen is being paid $10 million this season. His contract tops out at $14 million in 2017, with a team option for an additional year at $14.75 million. That's sweet money in the real world, but it's a pittance compared to the $25 million the Phillies are paying Ryan Howard this season, much to their regret. Howard is 35. The Phillies also owe him $25 million next year before they get to the point where they can buy out his last year for $10 million rather than the $23 million he's supposed to get. They'll have a party when that day arrives.
You can hit big on a long-term contract, and you can miss badly, too.
The Pirates know that. Huntington gave Ian Snell a three-year extension in 2008, buying out his last two years of arbitration eligibility and his first year of free agency. Had the option year for 2012 kicked in, Snell would have been paid $9.25 million.
Instead, Snell was out of baseball that year. He resurfaced a year later in an independent league, which appears to be the last time he pitched.
Long before Huntington arrived, Cam Bonifay cooked up a six-year, $60 million deal for Jason Kendall in November, 2000. Both sides wound up regretting that one. By the time it reached the final year with a $13 million salary, the Pirates were kicking in money for Kendall to play for Oakland.
The Pirates were ahead of the curve when it came to the idea of securing promising young players. They had second baseman Johnny Ray and shortstop Dale Berra under multi-year contracts in the 1980s.
When Dave Parker was approaching free agency in 1979, the perception was twofold: He was the best player in baseball, and there was little chance the Pirates could keep him.
But the Galbreaths dug deep for a precedent-setting five-year, $7.5 million contract that seemingly gave them the prime years of Parker's career. Instead, his production declined significantly, and Parker never finished in the top 20 of MVP voting in his remaining seasons with the Pirates. By the time Parker righted his career, he was playing for the Reds.
You pay your money, and you take your chances. Jose Tabata makes $4 million this season to play at Class AAA. He isn't good enough to make the Pirates, and there's no trade market for him. The Pirates still owe him $4.5 million for next season before they can write a check for $750,000 to buy out the last three years of his lamentable contract.
Will Harrison's deal turn out to be as reasonable as McCutchen's, or will it be as regrettable as Tabata's?  That's the Pirates' $27 million gamble.
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--AGING GRACEFULLY
Monday marks the beginning of the 15th season at PNC Park.
Three Rivers Stadium was demolished after 30 full baseball seasons. Does this mean we're approaching the halfway point in PNC Park's life span?
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--MOVING ON?
Rumors persist that Ryan Maguire, program director at 93.7 The Fan (KDKA-FM) since Nov., 2012, will soon be promoted to another spot within the CBS chain.
Some interesting candidates are lining up in case Maguire does leave.
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--NOBODY'S SAFE
There's a perception that the Penguins won't make a coaching change because they're already paying Dan Bylsma to sit at home.
Don't be so sure about that. If Mario Lemieux thinks the coaching is a problem, a change will be made.
GM Jim Rutherford was handcuffed to some degree by contracts he inherited, but the late-season salary cap issues still don't reflect well on him.
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--'DO OVER
Andrew McCutchen's dreadlocks are gone and Troy Polamalu has retired.
Big hair in Pittsburgh is now apparently confined to bridal parties.

Beaver County Times, April 5, 2015

The Pirates are about to open the season with something they haven't had in more than 20 years: Expectations.
To see what a burden that can be, just look across town at the Penguins. They're finishing the season with a stretch-run stumble that has talk show chatter focused on what changes will be made if (when?) they falter again in the playoffs.
People want to know who will be fired if they again fall short of the Stanley Cup Final, never mind that the general manager, the coaching staff and about 50 percent of the roster have been replaced in the last 10 months.
The Pirates are no longer the cute story of the little engine that could, the low-budget upstart that elbowed its way into the postseason as a wild card.
They're being seen as a legitimate contender, nothing less than a potential World Series champion, according to respected ESPN analyst Buster Olney. Of course, if projections from well-known cable analysts mattered that much, Kris Benson would have won the Cy Young Award, as Peter Gammons predicted in 1996.
Instead, Benson wound up being famous for marrying a former pole dancer who livened up Howard Stern's show with her lack of inhibitions.
But clearly this is a different kind of Pirates team, with potential horse Gerrit Cole primed to establish himself as a No. 1 starter. There are veterans lined up behind him in the rotation so that perennial question mark Charlie Morton can be pushed to No. 5.
The everyday lineup has an interesting mix of speed and power, especially if Pedro Alvarez is back on track after a lost season. The Pirates have never won without an MVP-caliber talent in the middle of the order, and Andrew McCutchen fits that description.
Some of this is pinned on more hope than hard evidence. Was Josh Harrison's breakthrough season truly the start of something big? Can Francisco Cervelli stay healthy and replace the many qualities that Russell Martin provided? Can Gregory Polanco benefit from last year's hard lessons and significantly improve? Can Cole overcome the shoulder issues that limited him to 22 starts last year? Can Alvarez play first base?
It wasn't that long ago when people were trying to figure out if the Pirates had enough to win 82 games and break that ugly streak of losing seasons.
Budgeting for World Series tickets is a lot more fun, but those expectations can be a heavy weight, too.
Just ask Ray Shero and Dan Bylsma.
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--FANTASY FOOTBALL
Mike Tomlin stopped by Pirates camp while he was in Florida on business and proved that football coaches never really stop thinking about football.
Tomlin repeated his idea that 6-foot-7 reliever Jared Hughes would make a formidable tight end and said that McCutchen would look good settling under a punt.
McCutchen played football in high school until he injured a knee and turned to baseball exclusively. He made the right decision.
Given the huge financial commitments teams make to players, we probably won't see multi-sport pro athletes like Deion Sanders and Brian Jordan again.
But wouldn't it be fun to see McCutchen wearing black and gold at Heinz Field as a kick returner?
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--WRONG NUMBERS
The "Nightly Sports Call" on WPCW has been a consistent low-cost profit center for KDKA-TV.
The 10:35 p.m. show uses a KDKA staffer and producer, who are already on duty, along with a sidekick from the Post-Gazette who is paid by the paper.
The set and production values look like "Wayne's World," but the show fills time and makes money.
It's also notorious as a playground for prank callers, who are now in the habit of posting their work on the Internet.
Things hit a breaking point recently when a caller, who was censored, used a racial slur and was followed by another caller also looking to cause trouble. With the end of the show looming, an exasperated Gene Collier disconnected and walked off the set at host Bob Pompeani's urging.
Apparently thinking they were off the air, Collier asked Pompeani, "Can't we do something about this (crap)," except he used a different word that got on the air.
In a world where caller ID is readily available, it would seem basic to either block or identify problem callers, yet that doesn't seem to be happening.
But that's "Nightly Sports Call:" Come for the discussion, stay for the train wreck.

Beaver County Times, March 29, 2015

As Pirates' spring training rolled into what seemed like its 38th week of utter nothingness, a couple of storylines developed, both surrounding the team's best player.
Andrew McCutchen sat out a bunch of exhibition games with what was described as "lower body soreness."
On his upper body, McCutchen also got a haircut that trimmed the trademark dreadlocks he's sported throughout his major league career.
Believe it or not, the haircut was the bigger story.
There wasn't a lot of information about his injury, and the Pirates even adopted the NHL habit of using the vaguest of terms to describe it. "Lower body soreness" could cover the pinch of breaking in new shoes, after all.
From a great distance away, it looks as though there wasn't much of anything wrong with McCutchen. The goal was probably to conserve his energy, but to do it in a way that didn't blatantly insult the people who buy tickets for exhibition games.
So "lower body soreness" works better than "Keeping him fresh for real games instead of wasting him for six innings in the hot sun against a bunch of Orioles minor leaguers for a meaningless exercise in the middle of March." It's shorter, too.
If exhibition games meant anything, they wouldn't end in ties when the visiting team runs out of pitchers.
Spring training has morphed from quaint little throwback into an adjunct seasonal industry of its own. Teams routinely shake down resort towns for new ballparks and other improvements.
Those who fail to agree lose their teams, and a good chunk of their tourism business. Have you heard of anyone going to Winter Haven lately?
There was a time when pitchers would run sprints across the outfield warning track after they left games. MLB cracked down on that a while back because having extra people on the field kind of gave away the idea that exhibition games weren't to be taken seriously.
But the games are not without meaning. Ticket prices rise, and the concession and souvenir stands operate at regular season levels. Ghost-legged vacationers have credit cards and cash stuffed in the pockets of those baggy Bermuda shorts.
Realistically, the games are a tune-up for the regular players. The pitchers need them more than the position players do. Things kick in a little more during the last 10 days of spring training, but it's all pretty much a half-speed exercise stretched over a schedule that's much longer than it needs to be.
For players like McCutchen, probably half the exhibition schedule is a waste of time.
So in that sense, maybe "lower body soreness" was the perfect explanation: Mid-March exhibition games are a pain in the butt.
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--POLAMALU PROBLEM
Mike Tomlin said he wouldn't talk about Troy Polamalu's future, which lends credence to the conspiracy theory surrounding the Steelers' bunker.
It goes like this: The coaching staff has no interest in having Polamalu return to the team. Ownership is sensitive to what Polamalu has meant to the Steelers and really doesn't want to release him.
The ideal solution would be to have Polamalu retire. According to Ike Taylor, Polamalu is training with the idea of playing somewhere this season.
Since the salary cap was implemented, it's taken some of the emotion out of roster decisions. There simply isn't room to keep players who aren't projected to be productive.
A generation ago, the Steelers kept Joe Greene a couple of years beyond his prime simply because he was Joe Greene, the first building block in the Super Bowl dynasty of the '70s. Keeping Greene meant that the Steelers cut promising rookie Dwaine Board, who went on to a fine 10-year career with the 49ers.
The clear answer here is to do what's right for the team. If the coaches have determined Polamalu can't help the Steelers win games any more, it's time to go.
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--NEW ORDER
They've rearranged things a bit on 93.7 The Fan (KDKA-FM) to try to eliminate those long stretches of commercials.
They've broken up the commercial clusters so they don't play endlessly right before the news updates and interrupt regular programming for as long as eight minutes.
There are still just as many commercials. They're just in different places now.
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--LAY LOW
If West Virginia had things to do over, maybe trash Tweeting Kentucky wasn't the best strategy.
Might have been better to stay quiet and hope to lull the powerful Wildcats into apathy.