Mark Madden stories, Page 16

Barry Bonds has rarely groused publicly about his exclusion from the Baseball Hall of Fame. But he presented his case thusly on a recent podcast: “I was vindicated. I went to court, I was in federal court, and I won my case, 100 percent. Where is the vindication of me...

The Pittsburgh Pirates took LSU pitching phenom Paul Skenes with the first pick of the MLB Draft. That’s step one. Step two is to not screw it up. Don’t keep Skenes in the minors till June next season by way of manipulating an extra year of team control via Super...

When no single topic jumps out, refreshing sports notes are the best option. Just like the Pirates, I made the obvious choice. • Concluding that 2 + 2 = 4 shouldn’t get you congratulated. But, regardless, be glad that the Pirates drafted pitcher Paul Skenes. They have botched simpler. •...

Mitch Keller deserves lots of credit for making the Pittsburgh Pirates’ season interesting. The right-handed pitcher is 9-4 with a 3.52 ERA. Keller has made 11 quality starts out of 18. Keller is an All-Star and could contend for the National League Cy Young Award. The Pirates aren’t yet very...

Pat McAfee got $85 million to join ESPN. ESPN laid off about 20 on-air personalities shortly thereafter. Idiot’s logic dictates that if B follows A, A caused B. But that’s not what happened. Even since Dan Patrick and Keith Olbermann transcended ESPN and became some semblance of mainstream stars in...

The Dubas debut is well underway. New president of hockey ops Kyle Dubas has made quite an impact on the Pittsburgh Penguins roster during his brief tenure, and it feels like he’s just getting started. The bottom six is improved. Lars Eller and Noel Acciari are efficient, pragmatic centers. The...

It’s been just a few days since this space suggested trading Andrew McCutchen if it would be best for the Pittsburgh Pirates. If it would provide decent return. I’ve already changed my mind. Whatever prospect the Pirates might get from Texas (or whoever) for McCutchen likely would not pan out....

Feel my heat, takin’ you higher, burn with me, these refreshing sports notes are on fire! So is Canada. That’s why we can’t breathe. • The Pittsburgh Pirates should be canceling games because of unsafe air quality. The players stated their concerns but were forced to play Thursday. It’s MLB’s...

Texas is reportedly interested in acquiring outfielder/DH Andrew McCutchen from the Pirates. McCutchen, 36, signed with the Pirates as a free agent this past offseason. It was a much-ballyhooed return to Pittsburgh after leaving the Pirates via trade to San Francisco following the 2017 campaign. Tears were shed, smiles plentiful....

When Jim Rutherford was Penguins GM, you knew what he’d do: A lot. When Ron Hextall was Penguins GM, you knew what he’d do: Often something stupid. But now, with Kyle Dubas as the team’s president of hockey operations and a very important week ahead, it’s hard to draw a...

Something called Pro Football Network ranked the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Mike Tomlin third among NFL coaches, trailing only Kansas City’s Andy Reid and New England’s Bill Belichick. Pro Football Network seems small potatoes. But this is exemplary of how Tomlin is rated, and why. He’s good just because. “A Tomlin team...

Ex-Pittsburgh Penguins goaltender Tom Barrasso made the Hockey Hall of Fame. It took him 17 years of eligibility. Former New York Rangers netminder Henrik Lundqvist made it on his first ballot. After just three years. Lundqvist had the advantage of playing in New York, North America’s top media hub. But...

UFC impresario Dana White offered a candid assessment of the NHL: “They are all old, dumb (expletive) people that have no idea what’s going on. They have no idea where this younger generation is, how you reach them.” (There’s a Van Halen lyric in there somewhere.) White pointed out that...

Stan Savran’s funeral begins at 1 p.m. Wednesday. My radio program starts at 3 p.m. So I’ll attend Stan’s funeral but will leave at 1:45 p.m. whether it’s completed or not because I want to make certain I get to the studio on time. That’s the biggest tribute I can...

After his team lost the Stanley Cup Final in five games to the Vegas Golden Knights, Florida Panthers coach Paul Maurice gave a powerful interview that referenced his “special group” and talked about how his players “love each other.” Hockey’s romantics fairly wept, citing the Panthers’ great culture. But it’s...

Pro Football Focus projects Alex Highsmith will get a four-year contract extension worth $65 million. That’s an average annual value of $16.25, which would rank him 13th among the NFL’s edge rushers. That’s insane. But Highsmith will get it. The Pittsburgh Steelers are bullied by their players easily and often....

In the new-age media tradition of compiling endless lists and providing content that would be more apropos in, say, 10-12 weeks, I present: Top 5 reasons the Steelers aren’t as good as you think 1. Defense doesn’t win. Not even elite defense, and it’s a big leap to assume the...

When no single topic stands out, it’s time for refreshing sports notes! (Problem is, that kills a gaggle of column ideas in one fell swoop.) • The Pittsburgh Pirates almost could win me over. They play hard, aggressive baseball and have a modicum of talent. But I don’t trust owner Bob...

Whenever a fan is in the presence of a big-time athlete, the fan should remember that the athlete doesn’t care about him or her. You won’t be friends. It’s an empty encounter, so don’t feel bad about wanting a selfie, autograph, whatever. (Be polite.) This especially goes if you have...

The Pirates swept bogey team St. Louis and then lost two of three to Oakland, perhaps the worst team in baseball history. It’s maddening, but the Pirates have somehow hung around the top of the very generic National League Central despite their consistent inconsistency. Shortstop Oneil Cruz won’t be back...

Before you moralize about the Saudis buying golf — which is exactly what they did Tuesday — ask yourself this: How would you feel if they bought the Pittsburgh Pirates? If the Saudis bought the Pirates, they would be the best team in MLB within two or three years. No...

As a talk-show stooge, I constantly get asked cliched questions. One of the more frequent: Which Pittsburgh team is closest to a championship? It might be the Riverhounds. Sure, it’s only Class AAA soccer. But the Riverhounds are quietly becoming a phenomenon, selling out five of their six home games...

The Pittsburgh Pirates lost 14-4 at San Francisco on Monday. Pirates utilityman Chase Owings (since cut) pitched the bottom of the eighth, the last time the Giants batted. A non-pitcher pitching is stupid. It happens at the end of lopsided games far too often. It shouldn’t happen at all. There’s...

Kyle Dubas is the Penguins’ new president of hockey operations. It’s a great hire. I told you it would be in March. Here’s what I like: • Dubas isn’t some blockhead ex-player hanging on by way of a second act. At 37, he’s a career executive. Dubas learned the craft...

The Pittsburgh Steelers are reportedly kicking around the idea of getting running backs Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren on the field at the same time. Cue a bunch of tweets: “Just like Franco and Rocky.” (One tweet literally said that. I ridiculed the author.) This sounds like mindless OTAs talk....