Tim Benz stories, Page 106

Anxiety about an Adam Frazier trade. Depression over the Pirates draft philosophy. And concerns over the future of college sports. That’s what filled up the comments section in the columns, email inbox and Twitter interactions for this week’s “U mad, bro?” We start with a tweet from Kenny. He agrees...

Neil Walker caught his fair share of ceremonial first pitches at PNC Park over his seven years as a Pittsburgh Pirate. Soon, he’ll be on the other end. “I’ve never thrown a pitch from the mound,” Walker said during Thursday’s “Breakfast With Benz” podcast. Although he did quickly boast about...

Ex-Steelers cornerback Steven Nelson may have a new team on his radar. His former teammate James Conner has big plans on and off the field in Arizona. The Bills will have all their fans in the stands when they welcome the Steelers during the season opener. And they may be...

Monday’s Supreme Court loss for the NCAA in the Alston case got a ton of attention nationally. But it could be years before a substantive change comes as a result. Michael McCann is a sports legal analyst for Sportico and was a longtime contributor to Sports Illustrated. He’s also a...

It’s not to the same degree that Pittsburgh Penguins fans have adopted the Vegas Golden Knights as a second team, but some diehard Pirates fans have tracked Vanderbilt baseball with a similar interest. Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker don’t have Marc-Andre Fleury’s cachet just yet in Pittsburgh. But they might...

Pittsburgh Penguins fans who have tracked Marc-Andre Fleury’s goaltending career have seen this before. • In 2013, he was replaced in the playoffs by Tomas Vokoun after going 23-8 in the regular season. • In 2016, he lost his job due to injury to Matt Murray before the playoffs began...

Tuesday’s “First Call” sees some NFL support for former Penn State star Carl Nassib. The Pirates have to face an old nemesis, and their MLB Draft Day decision may have just gotten more difficult. Plus, former Buccos star Neil Walker has an entertaining flashback. Full support NFL commissioner Roger Goodell...

Pick a topic. Not just sports. Any topic. Now pick a handful of conservative people you know and a handful of liberal people you know and have them discuss. See if you can get all nine or 10 of them to agree. On anything. Let me know how that goes....

Monday’s “First Call” looks at the idea of the Steelers swinging a trade with the New England Patriots to bring a former WPIAL star back to Pittsburgh. We wonder why the Steelers may want guard Trai Turner and who may offer a trade for Pirates infielder Adam Frazier. Plus, we...

As Major League Baseball plans to transition into the post-Spider Tack era on Monday, controversy is sure to follow. Arguments. Social media flame wars. Whining pitchers. Beanballs — accidental and retaliatory. Slower games thanks to incessant spot checks, more walks, wild pitches and deeper counts. And the game will have...

Mark Madden is back from an extended weekend, and he has opinions stored up and ready to fly. In this week’s “Madden Monday” podcast, we start by discussing the rumors that PLB Sports & Entertainment CEO Ty Ballou wanted to buy the Pirates, even though they aren’t for sale. Madden...

Pirates fans should circle the dates of July 19-21. It’s the second series coming out of the All-Star break. That’s when the Pirates (23-44) visit the Arizona Diamondbacks (20-50). So unless Major League Baseball implements ties between now and then, one of those teams is guaranteed to claim a victory....

Friday’s “First Call” has some faith in Steelers tackle Chuks Okorafor. Penguins captain Sidney Crosby gets a little love while his head coach does not. Plus, a confusing look at the future of NHL divisional play. And a milestone for a local hockey program. Take a chance on Chuks One...

Even as he ascends the Steelers depth chart at cornerback, Cameron Sutton’s role may not be changing all that much. For now, he’s still the guy who plays in the secondary wherever he’s asked based on whoever else is on the field at a given time. That’s not exactly untraveled...

Before last month’s PGA Championship, long-time Real Golf Radio host Brian Taylor joined me to preview the tournament, discuss its history and the return of fans to golf, analyze the Kiawah Island course and predict which golfers might contend. About the only thing Taylor didn’t break down was how Phil...

This edition of “U mad, bro?” touches all the bases. Oops. Sorry. Too soon? Ke'Bryan Hayes hits a home run for the Pirates, but missed first base. #Dodgers win the challenge. It remains 0-0 pic.twitter.com/uLa7FzTFVP— AM 570 LA Sports (@AM570LASports) June 9, 2021 This week we’ve got Steelers fans fretting...

We already know that Pittsburgh Steelers outside linebacker Alex Highsmith is one of the team’s biggest variables heading into 2021. Replacing Bud Dupree effectively will be no small task. Dupree had a total of 19.5 sacks and six forced fumbles over his last 27 games as a Steeler prior to...

Pittsburgh Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin is playing coy about some injury questions at minicamp. Tyler Glasnow went off about his injury and a possible connection to pitch-grip regulations. Marc-Andre Fleury is the new Conn Smythe favorite. And former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue still has concerns about gambling. All that...

The recently released plan to incorporate a 12-team College Football Playoff was largely met with applause last week. But it’s still a long way from becoming a reality. Remember, the idea was merely crafted by a CFB playoff subcommittee comprised of Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey,...

For those of us in the media suggesting Matt Canada’s offense will be a big change for Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, we were wrong. It’s actually going to be gigantic. Well, it will be if Canada decides to incorporate many of his tendencies and preferences from his college coaching days...

Former Pittsburgh Steeler Le’Veon Bell is now getting heat from ex-teammates in Kansas City after ripping Chiefs coach Andy Reid. Super Bowl winner Chris Godwin looks back on how his Penn State days aided his career. Marc-Andre Fleury claims Game 1 in his goalie duel against Carey Price. Tyler Glasnow...

Former Pittsburgh Steeler Antwaan Randle El wasn’t on the other end of a FaceTime conversation. It was just a phone call. But as soon as the question was asked, you could easily picture the smile coming across his face. You could certainly hear it in his voice during the answer....

Monday night’s 3-2 Pittsburgh Pirates loss to the Washington Nationals was rare. Not because the Pirates lost. We’re all used to that. It was rare because it didn’t feature a hit from Adam Frazier. It was just the second time in his last 16 games that the Pirates second baseman...

Monday’s “First Call” gives us a fired up Le’Veon Bell. We look at some important variables on the 2021 Steelers roster. The notion of bringing a former WPIAL star back to Pittsburgh may be in the cards for the Steelers. And one Kansas City Chiefs superstar sees a Steelers rival...

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster keeps talking about his desire to play outside more often this year. That may not be a great idea. Smith-Schuster is good in the slot, and if bouncing outside takes away snaps from Chase Claypool or potentially Diontae Johnson, that doesn’t sound like a...