Thanksgiving was just a few days ago, so this topic is relevant:
There can be too much of a good thing.
This doesn't just refer to turkey and Aunt Helen's special stuffing, either.
Rather it's about the NFL's insistence on making Thursday night the third prime time game of the week, to go along with Sunday and Monday.
ABC Monday Night Football used to be the big deal in the era of Howard Cosell and Dandy Don Meredith, but it's now become an afterthought on ESPN. The NFL steers the best games to Sunday nights on NBC.
The Sunday triple header is perfect. Catch the 1 o'clock game, another at 4:25. Then maybe grab a short nap and come back strong for the 8:30 kickoff.
There is no such accommodation for Thursday night football, nor has any particular demand developed.
For one thing the NFL schedules every team for a Thursday night, which means teams like Cleveland and Jacksonville will be on. That's not going to lure anyone away from "The Big Bang Theory."
The games are troublesome for the teams, who have to truncate the regular weekly schedule. The Steelers had one practice between last Sunday's game in Cleveland and their Thursday appointment in Indianapolis.
More importantly, it also reduces the recovery time for players. But Roger Goodell doesn't feel any of that pain.
Most fans vote with their clicker. But for the fans who pay the freight by buying season tickets, it's a major inconvenience. Who wants to get home after midnight when they have to get up for work the next morning?
Thursday night games exist mostly so the NFL Network will have semi-exclusive programming (part of the schedule is shared by CBS and NBC). Want to see the game and you don't have NFL Network? Call your cable or satellite provider and pay the premium that goes to the NFL.
It's a transparently greedy grab. It's good that there's been no more than a tepid reaction to an extra night of the NFL.
---
__SEAN GONE
The Atlanta Braves signed Sean Rodriguez for two years and $11.5 million.
Two surprises here: The Pirates didn't make more of an effort to keep him, and he wound up with a bottom feeder team rather than a contender.
Rodriguez is the kind of player who has the greatest value to a good team because of his versatility.
The Pirates spent their money on an extension for David Freese in August for about the same amount that Rodriguez got. That was probably a mistake.
The Pirates have Adam Frazier to pick up a lot of Rodriguez's role, but Frazier is a liability in the field. Rookie Alen Hanson is unproven, and his minor league history is dotted with attitude concerns.
Clint Hurdle has lost a valuable part-time weapon.
---
--ADDING UP
Fun math: Pitt scored 76 points against Syracuse on Saturday and still did not cover a 26-point spread.
--The Panthers' football team matched the number of points the basketball team scored a night earlier against Morehead State. Syracuse scored 61 points at Heinz Field, while Morehead State managed 63 on the court.
--Pitt's injury report did not confirm that the football stats crew had to be packed in ice after the game.
---
--NO SHOW
Pitt receiver Dontez Ford scored a 79-yard touchdown Saturday against Syracuse.
When he got to the end zone, he put the ball on the ground, turned and trotted back to his sideline.
That was it. No dancing, no preening, no twerking, no hip-shaking, no posing, no chest thumping, no shuffling, no high-stepping, no pantomime, no stomping, no spiking the football, no choreographed routine with any teammates, no look-at-me stuff whatsoever.
He put the ball on the ground, turned and trotted back to his sideline.
Maybe he could stop by Steelers' practice and show Antonio Brown how to do that.
Sunday, November 27, 2016
Sunday, November 20, 2016
Altoona Mirror, November 20, 2016
A visit to Cleveland to play the 0-10 Browns suddenly seems more stressful than it should be for the Steelers.
That's what happens when you go into games knowing your defense may not be able to stop anybody. That even includes the Browns, who are almost to the point of choosing a fan out of the stands to play quarterback.
This is suddenly a team in crisis, which desperately needs to win a game, even if it's against the woeful Browns.
Cam Heyward won't play again this season. James Harrison is a starter again because at 38, he's a better option than the former first-round draft pick who was supposed to replace him.
It's a mess, but the Steelers can at least buy a little relief by winning today. Then they have to prepare to play on Thanksgiving night at Indianapolis, a tough venue.
Unfortunately, this trip to Cleveland doesn't seem like the automatic win it did a few weeks ago.
---
--SEE YOU LATER
Oklahoma defensive lineman Charles Walker told his coaches he's shutting down his season to prepare for the NFL draft.
Walker, a redshirt junior, has been sidelined by a concussion. He's skipping the last two games and the bowl game.
Selfish? Sure. It probably also violates the spirit of the letter of intent he signed when he agreed to play football in exchange for a scholarship.
But in an environment where coaches jump contracts and leave behind players they recruited, it's just part of an increasingly slimy business.
Will NFL teams have any misgivings about drafting a player who was quick to abandon his team? Not if he's talented enough.
---
--CASHING IN
Remember Charlie Morton?
The Pirates' patience with him finally ran out last year, and they traded him to Philadelphia, almost miraculously dumping his entire regrettable $8 million tab on the Phillies.
For all the problems the Pirates had with their rotation last season, this still meets the textbook definition of addition by subtraction.
Morton pitched just 17 and 1/3 innings for the Phillies before he tore his hamstring. The Phillies exercised a $1 million buyout to make him go away. They paid him $9 million to win one game.
No problem, though. The Houston Astros signed Morton last week for $14 million guaranteed over two years. He can make more based on incentives for the number of starts he makes.
Morton is a nice guy, and he has talent. He's only teased with that talent, though. And if teams can have a nice guy who doesn't win games or a nasty one who is successful, they'll pick A.J. Burnett every time.
Morton is 33. He has an injury history. He's a chronic underachiever.
Yet in today's MLB, he's worth a $14 million commitment. That's for a pitcher whose career record is 46-71, with a 4.54 earned run average and 1.441 WHIP. He's not even lefthanded.
Bill Veeck said it best more than 50 years ago, long before free agency became an issue.
"You don't mind paying the stars," Veeck said. "They bring people to the ballpark. The problem is it drives up the price of mediocrity."
---
--VETERAN PRESENCE
Bill Hillgrove will mark his 76th birthday today calling the Steelers-Browns in Cleveland less than 24 hours after broadcasting the Duke-Pitt football game at Heinz Field.
When he does Pitt basketball, he's the "kid" on the broadcast team. Color analyst Dick Groat turned 86 a few weeks ago.
Hillgrove first worked a Pitt basketball broadcast in 1969, and he's not even the senior guy in town.
Duquesne's Ray Goss is 79, and called his first Dukes basketball game in 1968.
When people get those jobs, they tend to hang onto them.
That's what happens when you go into games knowing your defense may not be able to stop anybody. That even includes the Browns, who are almost to the point of choosing a fan out of the stands to play quarterback.
This is suddenly a team in crisis, which desperately needs to win a game, even if it's against the woeful Browns.
Cam Heyward won't play again this season. James Harrison is a starter again because at 38, he's a better option than the former first-round draft pick who was supposed to replace him.
It's a mess, but the Steelers can at least buy a little relief by winning today. Then they have to prepare to play on Thanksgiving night at Indianapolis, a tough venue.
Unfortunately, this trip to Cleveland doesn't seem like the automatic win it did a few weeks ago.
---
--SEE YOU LATER
Oklahoma defensive lineman Charles Walker told his coaches he's shutting down his season to prepare for the NFL draft.
Walker, a redshirt junior, has been sidelined by a concussion. He's skipping the last two games and the bowl game.
Selfish? Sure. It probably also violates the spirit of the letter of intent he signed when he agreed to play football in exchange for a scholarship.
But in an environment where coaches jump contracts and leave behind players they recruited, it's just part of an increasingly slimy business.
Will NFL teams have any misgivings about drafting a player who was quick to abandon his team? Not if he's talented enough.
---
--CASHING IN
Remember Charlie Morton?
The Pirates' patience with him finally ran out last year, and they traded him to Philadelphia, almost miraculously dumping his entire regrettable $8 million tab on the Phillies.
For all the problems the Pirates had with their rotation last season, this still meets the textbook definition of addition by subtraction.
Morton pitched just 17 and 1/3 innings for the Phillies before he tore his hamstring. The Phillies exercised a $1 million buyout to make him go away. They paid him $9 million to win one game.
No problem, though. The Houston Astros signed Morton last week for $14 million guaranteed over two years. He can make more based on incentives for the number of starts he makes.
Morton is a nice guy, and he has talent. He's only teased with that talent, though. And if teams can have a nice guy who doesn't win games or a nasty one who is successful, they'll pick A.J. Burnett every time.
Morton is 33. He has an injury history. He's a chronic underachiever.
Yet in today's MLB, he's worth a $14 million commitment. That's for a pitcher whose career record is 46-71, with a 4.54 earned run average and 1.441 WHIP. He's not even lefthanded.
Bill Veeck said it best more than 50 years ago, long before free agency became an issue.
"You don't mind paying the stars," Veeck said. "They bring people to the ballpark. The problem is it drives up the price of mediocrity."
---
--VETERAN PRESENCE
Bill Hillgrove will mark his 76th birthday today calling the Steelers-Browns in Cleveland less than 24 hours after broadcasting the Duke-Pitt football game at Heinz Field.
When he does Pitt basketball, he's the "kid" on the broadcast team. Color analyst Dick Groat turned 86 a few weeks ago.
Hillgrove first worked a Pitt basketball broadcast in 1969, and he's not even the senior guy in town.
Duquesne's Ray Goss is 79, and called his first Dukes basketball game in 1968.
When people get those jobs, they tend to hang onto them.
Sunday, November 13, 2016
Altoona Mirror, November 13, 2013
The Steelers issue their players standard uniforms, and not one of them has a trainee badge on it.
You get to the NFL, you go right into the fast lane.
Apparently this has been a problem for the Steelers, and could be one reason this team is a mere 4-4 in advance of this afternoon's home game against Dallas.
We've heard for years that the defense is complex, and rookies can't step in and do much immediately.
Last year, Mike Tomlin mentioned that receiver Sammie Coates was struggling with the level of conditioning required to play regularly in the NFL. In his second season, Coates is still learning on the job.
Now that opponents are throwing a coverage blanket over Antonio Brown, it's important that other receivers step up and make plays. As Tomlin noted, they didn't do that in last Sunday's loss in Baltimore.
The transition from college to pro football is obviously difficult. Yet the Cowboys come to town with a 7-1 record, built in part on the contributions of two rookies, quarterback Dak Prescott, and running back Ezekiel Elliott.
Prescott's passer rating is 104.2; Ben Roethlisberger's current mark is 93.9.
Elliott, Dallas' first-round draft pick, has 891 yards through half of the season and is averaging five yards per attempt.
Individual stats don't always mean a lot in football because success requires such a collaborative effort. Eight games is a fragmented sample size, too.
But the success Prescott and Elliott have had to this point indicates they aren't overwhelmed by the NFL and they're at least functioning competently in the Cowboys' systems.
Roethlisberger broke in with a bang in 2004, out of necessity. The Steelers had a sudden need at quarterback, and were able to adjust their offense so that Roethlisberger only needed to manage games.
Other rookies take their time. Cam Heyward, one of their best players on defense, needed a couple of seasons to get grounded. This year's No. 1 pick, Artie Burns, made his first start last week. It took that long because he couldn't break in to a secondary that's been a weak spot for several years.
Given the way a salary cap system leads to personnel turnover, time is a luxury the Steelers don't have. One organizational priority should be finding a way to get players assimilated to the demands of the NFL as quickly as possible.
---
--LEFT OUT
Keep an eye on Brown today, as the Cowboys undoubtedly will.
If he doesn't get the ball, he won't be happy. For all his dancing skills, Brown isn't much of an actor and he isn't able to hide his disappointment and frustration when things aren't going his way.
---
--MAC IS BACK
Lloyd McClendon is back with the Detroit Tigers as their hitting coach. He spent last season managing the Tigers' Class AAA team in Toledo.
McClendon would love another shot at managing, and Detroit might be the perfect spot since Brad Ausmus could be on a short leash.
One factor that could work against McClendon is his reluctance to embrace analytics. Baseball is increasingly looking for managers who are willing to take suggestions from the nerdy guys with the numbers.
---
--SAY WHAT?
During halftime of last week's Steelers-Ravens game. Tony Gonzalez suggested on CBS the Steelers weren't running Le'Veon Bell enough.
Actually, one of the reasons they were failing was their insistence in having Bell slam into the line for little or no gain.
---
--BOOK OF THE MONTH
Joe Buck has a new autobiography out.
If you can't stand him on TV, will you like him any better between hard covers for $38?
You get to the NFL, you go right into the fast lane.
Apparently this has been a problem for the Steelers, and could be one reason this team is a mere 4-4 in advance of this afternoon's home game against Dallas.
We've heard for years that the defense is complex, and rookies can't step in and do much immediately.
Last year, Mike Tomlin mentioned that receiver Sammie Coates was struggling with the level of conditioning required to play regularly in the NFL. In his second season, Coates is still learning on the job.
Now that opponents are throwing a coverage blanket over Antonio Brown, it's important that other receivers step up and make plays. As Tomlin noted, they didn't do that in last Sunday's loss in Baltimore.
The transition from college to pro football is obviously difficult. Yet the Cowboys come to town with a 7-1 record, built in part on the contributions of two rookies, quarterback Dak Prescott, and running back Ezekiel Elliott.
Prescott's passer rating is 104.2; Ben Roethlisberger's current mark is 93.9.
Elliott, Dallas' first-round draft pick, has 891 yards through half of the season and is averaging five yards per attempt.
Individual stats don't always mean a lot in football because success requires such a collaborative effort. Eight games is a fragmented sample size, too.
But the success Prescott and Elliott have had to this point indicates they aren't overwhelmed by the NFL and they're at least functioning competently in the Cowboys' systems.
Roethlisberger broke in with a bang in 2004, out of necessity. The Steelers had a sudden need at quarterback, and were able to adjust their offense so that Roethlisberger only needed to manage games.
Other rookies take their time. Cam Heyward, one of their best players on defense, needed a couple of seasons to get grounded. This year's No. 1 pick, Artie Burns, made his first start last week. It took that long because he couldn't break in to a secondary that's been a weak spot for several years.
Given the way a salary cap system leads to personnel turnover, time is a luxury the Steelers don't have. One organizational priority should be finding a way to get players assimilated to the demands of the NFL as quickly as possible.
---
--LEFT OUT
Keep an eye on Brown today, as the Cowboys undoubtedly will.
If he doesn't get the ball, he won't be happy. For all his dancing skills, Brown isn't much of an actor and he isn't able to hide his disappointment and frustration when things aren't going his way.
---
--MAC IS BACK
Lloyd McClendon is back with the Detroit Tigers as their hitting coach. He spent last season managing the Tigers' Class AAA team in Toledo.
McClendon would love another shot at managing, and Detroit might be the perfect spot since Brad Ausmus could be on a short leash.
One factor that could work against McClendon is his reluctance to embrace analytics. Baseball is increasingly looking for managers who are willing to take suggestions from the nerdy guys with the numbers.
---
--SAY WHAT?
During halftime of last week's Steelers-Ravens game. Tony Gonzalez suggested on CBS the Steelers weren't running Le'Veon Bell enough.
Actually, one of the reasons they were failing was their insistence in having Bell slam into the line for little or no gain.
---
--BOOK OF THE MONTH
Joe Buck has a new autobiography out.
If you can't stand him on TV, will you like him any better between hard covers for $38?
Sunday, November 6, 2016
Altoona Mirror, November 6, 2016
All hail the Chicago Cubs, loveable losers no more.
In fact, they're probably on their way to becoming insufferable winners.
Their first World Series victory in 108 years will undoubtedly lead to a high media profile. Cubs players will be as ubiquitous on commercials as Peyton Manning.
There will be a slew of Cubs books, too, fueled by their national following and the irresistible story of how they finally won.
Theo Epstein is the architect of this turnaround, working the same magic he did in Boston. Under his guidance, the Red Sox also ended a long drought and won a couple of Series with teams that Epstein assembled.
There is no question he's a smart operator. Proof of his intelligence is the way he chooses places that have an open checkbook for him to use when shopping for players.
The Cubs have an enviable core to their regular lineup: Kris Bryant is 24, Addison Russell is 22 and Kyle Schwarber is 23. (They're all younger than Gregory Polanco).
Anthony Rizzo is a comparative old man at 27, a year younger than Starling Marte.
Epstein has assembled a formidable group, and he knows he will have the resources to keep it together. While some teams would have to decide on which two of the four to keep, Epstein will have the luxury of signing all of them.
Need pitching? Epstein is the guy who gave Jon Lester a $155 million contract.
Money alone doesn't win. Look at the Detroit Tigers, who had a payroll of $206 million and missed the postseason.
Being smart only goes so far. Then the players climb the pay scale, and some of them have to be replaced. That's not easy.
When you can back a smart plan with about $200 million per year, you have the kind of monster the Cubs are becoming.
---
--MADDON'S MOVES
In the frenzy that followed the World Series, here's hoping Cubs manager Joe Maddon found time to offer a moment of silent thanks for the way his players got him off the hook.
Maddon had a series of questionable decisions including, but not limited to, his quick hook for starting pitchers, the overuse of closer Aroldis Chapman and his decision to have Javier Baez bunt with two strikes.
Maddon wound up holding the trophy. He could have just as easily been trying to justify his strategy.
---
--UNLIKELY HERO
One of the oddest aspects of the Cubs' season was the elevation of career backup catcher David Ross to folk hero.
Teammates loved him, which is fine. For some reason, fans also embraced a 39-year old career .229 hitter who was playing for his seventh team. That includes 40 games with the 2005 Pirates.
All's well that ends well, and Ross will inexplicably be a Cubs legend for the next century.
---
--TOUGH ENOUGH
Seems pretty ridiculous that Ben Roethlisberger's toughness is being challenged with accusations that he embellishes injuries and is some sort of diva or drama king.
He once finished a game with a broken nose, struggling to breathe through the packing material that was inserted to provide temporary support.
Some of his critics wouldn't be able to operate their TV remote if they had a paper cut.
---
--INTERESTING MATCH-UP
Early season hockey is usually ho-hum, but there's a potentially compelling match-up Tuesday at PPG Paints Arena.
Edmonton visits, led by Connor McDavid, who is widely touted as the next Sidney Crosby. He'll be going up against the existing Sidney Crosby, who has shown he isn't quite done with that role.
One possible caveat: The Penguins will be playing their first game after returning from the west coast, and those dates sometimes suffer from the travel hangover.
In fact, they're probably on their way to becoming insufferable winners.
Their first World Series victory in 108 years will undoubtedly lead to a high media profile. Cubs players will be as ubiquitous on commercials as Peyton Manning.
There will be a slew of Cubs books, too, fueled by their national following and the irresistible story of how they finally won.
Theo Epstein is the architect of this turnaround, working the same magic he did in Boston. Under his guidance, the Red Sox also ended a long drought and won a couple of Series with teams that Epstein assembled.
There is no question he's a smart operator. Proof of his intelligence is the way he chooses places that have an open checkbook for him to use when shopping for players.
The Cubs have an enviable core to their regular lineup: Kris Bryant is 24, Addison Russell is 22 and Kyle Schwarber is 23. (They're all younger than Gregory Polanco).
Anthony Rizzo is a comparative old man at 27, a year younger than Starling Marte.
Epstein has assembled a formidable group, and he knows he will have the resources to keep it together. While some teams would have to decide on which two of the four to keep, Epstein will have the luxury of signing all of them.
Need pitching? Epstein is the guy who gave Jon Lester a $155 million contract.
Money alone doesn't win. Look at the Detroit Tigers, who had a payroll of $206 million and missed the postseason.
Being smart only goes so far. Then the players climb the pay scale, and some of them have to be replaced. That's not easy.
When you can back a smart plan with about $200 million per year, you have the kind of monster the Cubs are becoming.
---
--MADDON'S MOVES
In the frenzy that followed the World Series, here's hoping Cubs manager Joe Maddon found time to offer a moment of silent thanks for the way his players got him off the hook.
Maddon had a series of questionable decisions including, but not limited to, his quick hook for starting pitchers, the overuse of closer Aroldis Chapman and his decision to have Javier Baez bunt with two strikes.
Maddon wound up holding the trophy. He could have just as easily been trying to justify his strategy.
---
--UNLIKELY HERO
One of the oddest aspects of the Cubs' season was the elevation of career backup catcher David Ross to folk hero.
Teammates loved him, which is fine. For some reason, fans also embraced a 39-year old career .229 hitter who was playing for his seventh team. That includes 40 games with the 2005 Pirates.
All's well that ends well, and Ross will inexplicably be a Cubs legend for the next century.
---
--TOUGH ENOUGH
Seems pretty ridiculous that Ben Roethlisberger's toughness is being challenged with accusations that he embellishes injuries and is some sort of diva or drama king.
He once finished a game with a broken nose, struggling to breathe through the packing material that was inserted to provide temporary support.
Some of his critics wouldn't be able to operate their TV remote if they had a paper cut.
---
--INTERESTING MATCH-UP
Early season hockey is usually ho-hum, but there's a potentially compelling match-up Tuesday at PPG Paints Arena.
Edmonton visits, led by Connor McDavid, who is widely touted as the next Sidney Crosby. He'll be going up against the existing Sidney Crosby, who has shown he isn't quite done with that role.
One possible caveat: The Penguins will be playing their first game after returning from the west coast, and those dates sometimes suffer from the travel hangover.
Tuesday, November 1, 2016
Altoona Mirror, November 2, 2016
Sally O'Leary went to work for the Pirates in 1964. She continued to work for them pretty much until the day she died last week at 82.
She started as the secretary in the public relations department, moved up to assistant media relations director, and spent her retirement years as the liaison for the team's alumni association.
The titles didn't matter. The bottom line is she was really the heart and soul of the Pirates, the rock who remained while the personnel around her constantly changed.
Without making gender an issue, she also wound up blazing a trail for women in baseball.
Her love for the game led her to take a pay cut and leave an ad agency to join the Pirates. Bob Prince, who had known her from a fan organization, helped make up the shortfall by putting Sally on his personal payroll to handle correspondence.
If the Gunner ever wished your Cousin Anthony a happy birthday or mentioned Aunt Veronica and Uncle Nick's anniversary, it was because Sally provided a daily list from the mountain of letters.
When she wasn't keeping Prince's business in order, she was half of the two-person PR department. Her duties included clipping the daily newspaper stories and pasting them in large scrapbooks. It's a miracle she was never overcome by rubber cement fumes.
Those books are still in the Pirates' offices, providing a detailed chronicle of each season for researchers.
Forget about computers. There weren't even calculators in her early days with the Pirates. Stats were updated with the aid of charts which listed all the outcomes for totals of hits and at bats. The alternative was long division and a sharp pencil.
If Sally was ever "just" a secretary, that didn't last long. She was bright and dedicated and handled a lot of the responsibilities without being asked. The smart PR directors realized what an asset she was.
Her loyalty to the Pirates wasn't always returned. Teams back then didn't pay the office staff a lot, knowing that others were always anxious to sign on for the perceived glamour of working in sports. When Sally's supplemental income dried up with Prince's firing, coincidentally her rent increased. She took her case for a modest raise to the guy in charge, who gruffly suggested she should get a roommate.
Baseball changed. Players became more transient, and there was more distance. The personal relationships forged at Forbes Field became more scarce. Sally once famously said, "Barry Bonds doesn't know me from a bar of soap." That was his loss.
She endured, and stayed on through retirement in 1996. The Pirates gave her a party at the Allegheny Club, and needed that vast space to host her many friends.
Handling the alumni association was a perfect job for her. She built that organization into baseball's best with her customary diligence and attention to detail. Every former player received a birthday card from the alumni association every year. She compiled and published a directory of addresses and phone numbers so former teammates could find each other.
Sally treated them all well, but she had her favorites. Danny Murtaugh was on her all-time list. So were Bill Mazeroski and Steve Blass. More recently, Clint Hurdle won her over.
Sally's devotion to the Pirates was exceeded only by her love of all things Irish. She took on an extra job in the Three Rivers Stadium scoreboard room partly so she could fund a trip to Ireland with her sisters every other year.
I'll always remember the way her Irish eyes smiled, and her hearty laugh.
One of the best things about covering the Pirates for all these years has been having Sally O'Leary as a friend for all these years.
She started as the secretary in the public relations department, moved up to assistant media relations director, and spent her retirement years as the liaison for the team's alumni association.
The titles didn't matter. The bottom line is she was really the heart and soul of the Pirates, the rock who remained while the personnel around her constantly changed.
Without making gender an issue, she also wound up blazing a trail for women in baseball.
Her love for the game led her to take a pay cut and leave an ad agency to join the Pirates. Bob Prince, who had known her from a fan organization, helped make up the shortfall by putting Sally on his personal payroll to handle correspondence.
If the Gunner ever wished your Cousin Anthony a happy birthday or mentioned Aunt Veronica and Uncle Nick's anniversary, it was because Sally provided a daily list from the mountain of letters.
When she wasn't keeping Prince's business in order, she was half of the two-person PR department. Her duties included clipping the daily newspaper stories and pasting them in large scrapbooks. It's a miracle she was never overcome by rubber cement fumes.
Those books are still in the Pirates' offices, providing a detailed chronicle of each season for researchers.
Forget about computers. There weren't even calculators in her early days with the Pirates. Stats were updated with the aid of charts which listed all the outcomes for totals of hits and at bats. The alternative was long division and a sharp pencil.
If Sally was ever "just" a secretary, that didn't last long. She was bright and dedicated and handled a lot of the responsibilities without being asked. The smart PR directors realized what an asset she was.
Her loyalty to the Pirates wasn't always returned. Teams back then didn't pay the office staff a lot, knowing that others were always anxious to sign on for the perceived glamour of working in sports. When Sally's supplemental income dried up with Prince's firing, coincidentally her rent increased. She took her case for a modest raise to the guy in charge, who gruffly suggested she should get a roommate.
Baseball changed. Players became more transient, and there was more distance. The personal relationships forged at Forbes Field became more scarce. Sally once famously said, "Barry Bonds doesn't know me from a bar of soap." That was his loss.
She endured, and stayed on through retirement in 1996. The Pirates gave her a party at the Allegheny Club, and needed that vast space to host her many friends.
Handling the alumni association was a perfect job for her. She built that organization into baseball's best with her customary diligence and attention to detail. Every former player received a birthday card from the alumni association every year. She compiled and published a directory of addresses and phone numbers so former teammates could find each other.
Sally treated them all well, but she had her favorites. Danny Murtaugh was on her all-time list. So were Bill Mazeroski and Steve Blass. More recently, Clint Hurdle won her over.
Sally's devotion to the Pirates was exceeded only by her love of all things Irish. She took on an extra job in the Three Rivers Stadium scoreboard room partly so she could fund a trip to Ireland with her sisters every other year.
I'll always remember the way her Irish eyes smiled, and her hearty laugh.
One of the best things about covering the Pirates for all these years has been having Sally O'Leary as a friend for all these years.
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