The Pirates have put all their chips on the table. Manager John Russell has a good poker face but might be in over his head now that the future of franchise is in his hands. Tabata, Lincoln, Walker, and McCutchen are now on the big league roster. Pedro Alvarez is either a LaRoche trade, injury or a month away, which ever comes first. Heading into last night’s game the Pirates were battling to stay out of last place with a 23-35 record. This puts them on pace for 64 wins. Basically they have a 50 percent chance to either stay bad or get better. We should know in a couple of months if they’re improving or if we’ve been fooled again. Oh that Bob Nutting, fools us every time. If the new guys fail to improve, then four more years of losing is probably in the cards.
What do you think will be the biggest local sports story of the summer? I would think the Steelers with their large following will grab the most headlines. Those headlines will focus on the starting quarterback / Big Ben Situation. The Penguins seem headed for a quiet offseason, but that could change especially if Malkin is put on the trading block. The Pirates prospects Walker/Lincoln/Tabata/Alvarez could be big news; if they all come up and even more so if they start out well. I doubt the World Cup will be big news in Armstrong County, but school district’s administration situation and its athletic ramifications could be. Feel free go online and give your pick for the top sports story of the summer.
Feel free to post your comments.
Last night on Rizzo Sports Weekly I had on Rob Egan the GM of the Altoona Curve. He was nice enough to bring 75 tickets for Saturday Night’s 6:30 game. If you’re looking for something to do this holiday weekend I encourage you to consider going to the game. You can pick up the tickets at the Kittanning Paper Office on South Jefferson St. in Kittanning. If you have never been to a minor league game they’re a lot of fun, and Blair County Ballpark is highly praised. Rob even recommended some good food to try at the ballpark. Altoona is off to a great start, they’re 28-16, plus they have some great prospects like shortstop Chase d’Arnaud, outfielder Gorkys Hernandez, and pitcher Daniel Moskos. For more info you can also checkout their website www.altoonacurve.com.
The 2010 MLB Draft is two weeks a way. Washington is poised to take Bryce Harper first and who the Pirates pick with the second selection is anyone’s guest. Harper who I think will be major league in one year, would be the perfect left handed power hitter for PNC Park. Washington signed last year’s first pick Stephen Strasburg to a record $15m four year deal. With Strasburg only a couple a weeks away, from the major, that contract could end up being a bargain. The Pirates should try to scare Washington off Harper, by floating $30m for 5 years, which might not be enough. At the very least they’ll make it look their serious about improving. I suggest Neil Huntington stop being a wimp and start talking.
Every election matters and certainly the race for governor of Pennsylvania could have an impact on sports in the keystone state. Specifically, at the high school level where the upcoming teacher pension crisis will be huge news. A lot of people think certain sports could be cut. If they try to merge school districts that will have a huge impact as well. If a new governor would push school choice or even drug testing, that would have an impact. All of the pro sports teams have new stadiums so I doubt a new governor will have much influence over them during the next four to eight years. However, I think there is going to be a lot of changes at the high school level forthcoming.
The Freeport boys won the Double-A WPIAL Track & Field Title on Friday. The Freeport girls finished second. There are only 3 WPIAL classifications for Track & Field. This was an exceptional group of senior boys for Freeport, winning the third WPIAL Track & Field Title in school history. The YellowJackets have traditionally been very solid in track and field. Freeport made the WPIAL Finals in Girls’ Volleyball and won section title in boys’ football, basketball, and baseball. Freeport plays Double-A in basically every sport and the question now becomes are they the top overall school in their classification? With their softball & baseball teams still in playoffs, they could make it non argument.
Kittanning Completes Historic Year against Ford City. It wasn’t long ago that no matter what they tried Kittanning could not beat Ford City. However times have changed. This year the Kittanning Boys defeated Ford City in Football, Basketball, and Baseball. This hasn’t happened in years, if ever, as no one can confirm this. In fact Kittanning was 15-0 against Ford City this school year in all varsity sports, including 2-0 in girls volleyball. I wonder if that fact will find its way into the commencement address. I’m willing to bet this has never happened before, and probably won’t ever happen again. So was it just a great senior class for Kittanning or the start of a dominate run? Either way I know in Ford City there are a lot of circles on next season’s calendars
Hear is the breakdown
1. Football 1-0
2. Volleyball 2-0
3. Girls Golf 2-0
4. Boys Golf 1-0
5. Girls Tennis 2-0
6. Cross Country 2-0 (Boys and Girls both won)
7. Boys Basketball 1-0
8. Girls Basketball 1-0
9. Baseball 1-0
10. Track & Field 2-0 (Boys and Girls both won)
Joe Paterno and Dave Wannstedt yesterday decided to play each other. Just Kidding. Actually they met with the PA Football Coaches Association to lobby for spring football practice. Ironically, earlier in the week I was toying with the idea of writing a column about high schools having a spring game like most colleges do. Some of the big football states, like Florida and Texas, already allow this. I will point out that I don’t think there is a high school football team in the WPIAL that doesn’t do some type of spring activity. However, they technically can’t have a mandatory practice. They would like to see a two-week late May practice period. This would be after baseball and track finish their regular seasons. I have a feeling this will be a reality in a couple of years.
During this school year, Freeport has won the boys’ section titles in football, basketball, and now baseball. Their girls’ volleyball team won the section and made it to the WPIAL finals. Freeport traditionally has had strong soccer teams, but year both the girls and boys missed the playoffs. They’re looking at four section titles out of the eight major WPIAL sports. The question is, can they keep it up or did they just have an exceptional senior class of boys? They’ll remain in Double-A for most sports next year and be near the top in enrollment. They’re in area that is growing and have a lot of factors going their way. However, I think we’ll just have to wait to see if they can duplicate their success next year.
Actually we’re looking for pictures of significant or rare fish caught in Armstrong County. I know a lot of people who enjoy fishing and many people come to Armstrong County to fish. I created a page on my website to post pictures of fish caught in the county – www.rizzosports.com/news/amstrong-county-fishing/. If you would like your picture included on this page, please email; Your Name, Fish Type, Length, Weight, Date and the Body of Water where the fish was caught: to mrizzo@familylifetv.com. Remember I’m only interested in big newsworthy fish. There are ton of unsubstantiated fishing stories out there; hopefully we can help separate fact from fiction. I also hope to showcase the good fishermen and quality environment we have locally so don’t go out without a camera.
