Mark Madden: Bad offensive line might sink Steelers

There’s no Madden Markdown when it comes to refreshing sports notes. You pay full price, but get maximum value.

• Trai Turner being signed to patchwork the Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line is like slapping a butterfly stitch on a shotgun wound. Pro Football Focus: “Turner (was) the lowest-graded right guard in the entire league by a wide margin.”

• Any optimism about the Steelers is obliterated by how bad the offensive line figures to be. It legit might be the NFL’s worst. It’s complemented by a quarterback with 39-year-old legs, a rookie running back and a position coach who is as far removed as possible from Mike Munchak.

• I’m told that Steelers players were against using Latrobe for training camp. Did that affect not returning? Kansas City and Dallas got their plans approved to conduct camp away from their in-town facilities. Why couldn’t the Steelers? Who nixed it? Not using Saint Vincent College is no big deal except for the Latrobe-area economy. That’s a huge problem for those involved.

• I bet the Steelers never return to Latrobe for training camp. It’s logistically easier to use Heinz Field and the South Side facility. Rich football players don’t want to live in dorms. The Steelers reportedly only planned to spend 10 days in Latrobe, anyway.

• The local woke brigade wet their pants because one half of Big & Rich made an anti-Dr. Fauci remark on Twitter, and the country music duo performs at PNC Park after Thursday’s Pirates game. “I’m so angry at the Pirates!” Where’s the outrage over Joy Behar’s homophobic “joke” about gay NFL player Carl Nassib on “The View,” or ESPN’s Jalen Rose calling Kevin Love the token white player on the U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team? Don’t pick and choose.

• The big upcoming attraction at Pirates games is when the New York Mets visit PNC Park July 16-18. Jacob deGrom should get a start for the Mets. His ERA is 0.69. His WHIP is .526. He is having the best season ever by any pitcher. How often can you buy tickets to see a perfect game?

• In his MLB debut Sunday at St. Louis, Pirates pitcher Max Kranick retired the first 15 batters. Then the rain came. A 64-minute delay forced Kranick’s removal. It’s a shame the downpour halted the game. If play doesn’t resume, the result stands and Kranick could claim a perfect game in his first big-league start. History was beckoning. But Kranick can’t pitch again after cooling down for over an hour. It’s much different than observing pitch count. Kranick gets hurt, lit up, or both.

• The Pirates went into tone-deaf mode Monday by optioning Kranick to Triple-A Indianapolis. What kind of message does that send? The Pirates come home Thursday to start a seven-game homestand. Kranick starting at PNC Park would have excited fans and sold tickets. It might have been the most value he ever provides. Maybe Kranick returns soon. Maybe this is roster maneuvering. But Kranick pitched five perfect innings and got sent down to the minors the next day. Horrible optics.

• Some lowlights from SportsCenter’s highlights: After Game 7 of the NHL semifinal between Tampa Bay and the New York Islanders, the anchor referred to the first period as “the first quarter” and mispronounced a slew of names. (I’m not obligated to learn his name if he couldn’t be bothered to properly say theirs.) ESPN and the NHL should have a lovely broadcast partnership.

• Also on SportsCenter: On Saturday, MLB highlights were Philadelphia’s Aaron Nola striking out 10 hitters in a row, then a bunch of home runs by Fernando Tatis Jr., Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Kyle Schwarber. Then it occurred: Those aren’t the highlights. That is baseball, period.

• Patting down pitchers for sticky substances hasn’t turned out badly beyond Philadelphia manager Joe Girardi going carny to rattle Washington ace Max Scherzer and Oakland hurler Sergio Romo dropping his pants in outrage. Otherwise, it’s much ado about little. Not every pitcher suddenly started to stink. The occasional strike still gets thrown. Rights weren’t violated.

• Tampa Bay vs. Montreal is an intriguing Stanley Cup Final. I’d like to see Tampa Bay win, because that’s a victory for playing the game the right way. But the Lightning circumvented the salary cap when winger Nikita Kucherov didn’t play until the playoffs. The Canadiens too often turn games into sludge but also have exciting young players like Cole Caufield, Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Nick Suzuki. Montreal winning truly would aggravate Toronto.

• Ex-Penguins winger Beau Bennett retired at 29 after an injury-wracked career. His output betrayed his status as a first-round pick in 2010, but Bennett is a thoroughly good human who absorbed hockey’s slings and arrows with perpetual good humor and was able to joke about his various maladies. The guy’s got charisma. It’s a shame it couldn’t keep him in one piece.

• Here’s a philosophical quote from Bennett during his Penguins tenure: “For a young guy, Rite Aid is our Giant Eagle.” Deep.

• I’m cleaning out my home office and unearthed the following: A get-well letter from Dan Rooney after I had my heart attack in 2006; an e-mail I printed out from “Ball Four” author Jim Bouton that called me a “good writer;” a letter from Myron Cope’s lawyer claiming that I was denigrating his client on-air; my termination letters from ESPN 1250 and World Championship Wrestling; the press pass from Sidney Crosby’s first NHL game (it was in New Jersey); 10 bags of garbage. Good times, bad times, you know I’ve had my share.

• Jake from State Farm might protest that everybody gets the same rate, but he keeps all that free stuff. Somebody tell State Farm management. That’s payola.