Kevin Gorman Columns category, Page 11
Kevin Gorman: Ray Searage wears bull’s-eye as Pirates deal with pitching problemsVideo
Ray Searage hears the criticism. How could he not? The strength of the Pittsburgh Pirates was supposed to be the pitching staff, with a strong starting rotation and a loaded bullpen. Instead, the Pirates have dealt with disaster, as pitching became their biggest problem. A dozen pitchers have spent time...
Kevin Gorman: After being benched, Artie Burns shows accountability to Steelers
Artie Burns was answering questions about living up to the expectations of a first-round draft pick who was benched last season when a smile came across his face and his eyes lit up. Burns interrupted an interview to reach out and high-five his 4-year-old son, A.J., who arrived at his...
Kevin Gorman: Devin Bush wants to put Steelers ILB job on ‘lock, like his ponytail
Devin Bush has football in his blood and on his brain, as the rookie inside linebacker has impressed the Pittsburgh Steelers with his athleticism and his ability to absorb the playbook. But Bush believes it’s also in his hair. James Conner made waves with his modern-day mullet for the season...
Kevin Gorman: Steelers have to hope JuJu learned dos and don’ts from AB
To say JuJu Smith-Schuster learned from Antonio Brown is an understatement about the understudy of the NFL’s most prolific pass-catcher and social-media star of this decade. That Smith-Schuster embraces the opportunity to replace Brown as the Pittsburgh Steelers’ top player in both regards is only as valuable as how much...
Kevin Gorman: Penguins GM playing with poker face on trading Phil Kessel
Phil Kessel pulled a page out of the playbook of another Pittsburgh sports superstar, using his leverage like Antonio Brown to kill a trade before it could be finalized. Difference is, Jim Rutherford didn’t cave like Kevin Colbert. Where the Steelers general manager stayed true to his word about trading...
Kevin Gorman: With top pick Quinn Priester, Pirates love the man in the mirror
Upon being introduced as the newest member of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Quinn Priester casually mentioned the mirror where he wrote his goals in dry-erase marker. There was nothing casual about his goals, which were outlined in an arc around his bathroom mirror so Priester could still see himself while brushing...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: This time, Pirates have no choice but turn to Mitch Keller
The Pittsburgh Pirates spent Saturday making moves and general manager Neal Huntington spent Sunday explaining the decisions on his weekly radio show. The biggest was made for him. Before Nick Kingham was designated for assignment — likely signaling his ending with the club — and Rookie Davis was placed on...
Kevin Gorman: In musical outfield, Pirates should save Bryan Reynolds a seat
The Pittsburgh Pirates have dealt with so many injuries to their outfielders this season that they have been forced to play a game of musical chairs, starting nine players. When Corey Dickerson returns from a 60-day stint on the injured list, however, the Pirates will have a crowded outfield. It’s...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Waiting for internal options, Pirates struck out lookingVideo
The Pittsburgh Pirates left PNC Park on Thursday afternoon dressed in disguise, wearing superhero costumes for their flight to Milwaukee to begin a 10-game road trip. We might not recognize them when they return. Corey Dickerson is expected to be activated from the injured list for Friday’s game against the...
Kevin Gorman: Pirates need Starling Marte, Gregory Polanco to change narrativeVideo
There are perhaps no Pittsburgh Pirates who frustrate the fan base more than Starling Marte and Gregory Polanco, not so much for what they are but what they aren’t. The Pirates’ starting center fielder and right fielder, respectively, are two of their highest-paid players, but they aren’t the perennial All-Stars...
Kevin Gorman: It’s time Steelers made coaching secondary a priority
The Pittsburgh Steelers addressed many positions of need through free agency and the NFL Draft, whether it was signing Mark Barron, Donte Moncrief and Steven Nelson or selecting Devin Bush, Diontae Johnson and Justin Layne. One of the most important offseason acquisitions was hiring Teryl Austin as secondary coach, adding...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Did Pirates pick right player in prep pitcher Quinn Priester?
Neal Huntington might have foreshadowed the Pittsburgh Pirates’ first-round draft pick when he cited an old baseball adage Sunday on his weekly radio show. The right high school player gets to the majors faster than the wrong college player. The Pirates had strong ties to both in Monday’s MLB Draft,...
Kevin Gorman: Will MLB draft yield an Andrew McCutchen or Bryan Bullington for Pirates?
Once upon a time, I considered myself something of a draft junkie, tracking and charting every pick of the NFL and NBA drafts long before it was my job to do so. But the MLB draft doesn’t have the same cachet, as it involves a mix of high school and...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Chris Archer deserved standing O for slinging arrowsVideo
The first play of Chris Archer’s start saw shortstop Kevin Newman make a backhand stab and jump-throw that saw Josh Bell stretch into a split to get Lorenzo Cain out at first. Seven innings later, Gregory Polanco made a sliding catch of a Lorenzo Cain pop fly in right field,...
Kevin Gorman: ‘Football is life’ for Steelers nose tackle Javon HargraveVideo
Javon Hargrave knows this is a big year for him as the Pittsburgh Steelers nose tackle enters the final year of his rookie contract with his sights set on earning a lucrative deal. Not that you could tell by the easy smile on his face. “In the NFL, I feel...
Kevin Gorman: T.J. Watt sets new tone for Steelers by embracing leadership roleVideo
T.J. Watt evolved from a rookie who kept his head down and tried not to mess up to a second-year star who led the Pittsburgh Steelers in sacks and was selected to the Pro Bowl. When asked what he would do for an encore in his third season, the first...
Kevin Gorman: Why do Pirates keep pitching to Derek Dietrich?Video
Derek Dietrich has made a habit of admiring his home runs – a little too long for my liking – and celebrating them with choreographed moves while rounding the bases. Chris Archer took exception to Dietrich’s homer display and threw a pitch behind the Cincinnati Reds infielder last month that...
Kevin Gorman: Steelers’ Mason Rudolph fights to back up ‘Mr. Roethlisberger’
Mason Rudolph walked on eggshells with the Pittsburgh Steelers last year after Ben Roethlisberger second-guessed the team using a third-round draft pick on a quarterback. It wasn’t so much Roethlisberger felt threatened by the arrival of an eventual heir as it was he believed the Steelers should have addressed needs...
Kevin Gorman: Credit Pirates GM for calling for concussion-related rule changes
Neal Huntington deserves credit for stepping out of his comfort zone as Pittsburgh Pirates general manager to challenge Major League Baseball’s concussion protocol. When Pirates catcher Francisco Cervelli took a broken bat off his mask in the fourth inning Saturday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers (but didn’t remove himself...
Kevin Gorman: Pirates need Mitch Keller to stabilize starting rotationVideo
I asked Neal Huntington whether he subscribed to the idea that an elite pitching prospect like Mitch Keller, ready or not, would rise to a higher level because it was required of him. The Pittsburgh Pirates general manager had a three-word answer: “Not at all.” Keller will make his major-league...
Kevin Gorman: Pirates can’t afford for Mitch Keller to be a bustVideo
The Pittsburgh Pirates want you to believe there was a developmental delay that prevented them from promoting top prospect Mitch Keller to the major leagues until Memorial Day. The Pirates want you to believe that they were waiting for the 23-year-old right-hander to refine a cutter-slider at Triple-A Indianapolis to...
Kevin Gorman: Steelers tackle Jerald Hawkins should be saluted for comeback
Jerald Hawkins is approaching an anniversary, but instead of celebrating, the Pittsburgh Steelers offensive tackle views it as symbolic of how much he wants to play football. It was almost a year ago — May 30, 2018 — when Hawkins suffered a painful and season-ending injury when he tore his...
Kevin Gorman: Vince Williams welcomes Steelers’ new inside linebackersVideo
If you expected Vince Williams to sound insecure or insulted about the Pittsburgh Steelers signing a free-agent inside linebacker and selecting another inside linebacker with their top draft pick, you don’t know Vince Williams. Williams never is at a loss for words, but he directed his vitriol toward what he...
Kevin Gorman: Big Ben takes big step toward becoming better leader for SteelersVideo
The Pittsburgh Steelers endured an offseason notable for its negativity, with much of the criticism directed at the lack of leadership by franchise quarterback Ben Roethlisberger. That Roethlisberger took it to heart could prove to be a positive, especially if he becomes a better leader. It’s what they need from...
Kevin Gorman’s Take 5: Ben Roethlisberger misses mark in interview
If you somehow missed its promos the past two days, KDKA-TV scored an exclusive interview with Ben Roethlisberger. The Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback made his first public comments since the 2018 season ended short of the NFL postseason, after almost five months of silence. What KDKA billed as “The Interview: Ben...
