Starkey & Mueller

Pirates 2, Cubs 0 in the first of three at Wrigley Field this weekend. The Pirates got clutch pitching and a clean 9th inning from Dennis Santana. We tipped our cap to Carmen Mlodzinski, who pitched into the 6th inning after struggling in previous outings when he sees a lineup multiple times. Big credit went to the bullpen for closing the door.

Steelers insider Nick Farabaugh from Penn Live dot com joined the show for a little Fair Game w/ Farabaugh. Is TJ Watt getting traded and is his contract even tradable? Nick is worried about Nick Herbig being blocked from a starting role as somewhat coming up on a contract year. Nick told the guys why a safety will be considered in the 1st round because of the lack of depth at the position in this year’s class. The discussion went back to Herbig and if the Steelers would pay/tag him after this season. Nick believes the Steelers would bet a ‘significant haul’ if they traded Herbig right now. Nick doesn’t think TE will be considered in the 1st round, even if Kenyon Sadiq is still on the board, but it should be on the table in the middle rounds.

At least one Steelers insider reached out to Poni to say the Gerry Dulac report on TJ Watt being floated for a trade is ‘complete BS.’ Chris and Donny guessed Mark Kaboly, who tends to enjoy poo-pooing any big news. Another layer on this is Nick Herbig, who got interest from another team, but the call reportedly ‘went nowhere.’

The Penguins are IN. The 5-2 win in New Jersey clinched a playoff spot for the first since the 2021-2022 season. The Pens proved A LOT of people wrong this season, which was one many expected the Penguins to be a lottery team. It sounds like Sidney Crosby had more motivation than usual to get this team into the postseason. Penguins social media decided to dunk on Poni a few times last night, even though they had many doubters.

A Pirates pregame to start the show as the Buccos begin a series against the Cubs at Wrigley Field. What are the takeaways from the lineup put out there by Donny Kelly? The Pirates have struggled mightily against Shota Imanaga in the past. Why are players already getting planned off days this early in the season?

PM Team FULL Show 4-9-26

The Steelers are meeting with Makai Lemon, who finds himself in the top tier of WR entering the 2026 NFL Draft. He is joined by Carnell Tate and Jordyn Tyson in that group. If Lemon is not going to get out of the Top 15, should the Steelers trade up? Is there anyone worth making the ‘Devin Bush’ trade for? Steelers insider Ray Fittipaldo from the PG joined the show. The guys asked Ray about the visitors to the Steelers in the pre-draft process, including Makai Lemon. Ray thinks there will be plenty of starting talent found on the second day of the draft. Ray speculated how the Steelers may have their WR board configured. What did the Packers WR corps look like in the Mike McCarthy heyday in Green Bay and how could the Steelers turn theirs into that? Ray shared why the Steelers may consider taking a safety in the 1st round. Ray doesn’t think the Steelers would receive a 1st round pick in exchange for TJ Watt at this point, but thinks the team’s ask would be way too high for him in a trade. Ray had an interes

A very interesting nugget shared by Gerry Dulac in his chat today – the idea of trading TJ Watt or Alex Highsmith. Right now, Nick Herbig is blocked from becoming a starter, but is due for a new deal after this upcoming season. Are they too late trying to move on from Watt? What type of return could they be looking at right now? Are fans OK with the Steelers trading TJ Watt at this point? Donny Football Debrief – The justice department is coming after the NFL with an anticompetitive case facing the consumer.

The Steelers are courting the top prospect out of the MAC as Emmanuel McNeil-Warren is set to visit. The 6’3 safety was a star on the Toledo defense. He committed just one penalty in his college career. Would this be a bad move by the Steelers at 21? KDKA TV’s Bob Pompeani joined the show. Pomp is revved up for The Masters, which is underway at Augusta. How are his picks looking? Why is Patrick Reed so hated? Bob shared his ideal ‘Masters meal’ so the guys could critique it. Should the Steelers consider safety in the 1st round? Bob talked about draft coverage over the years with the selection meeting coming to town in 2 weeks. Where does the job by Dan Muse rank among coaching jobs in major PGH sports in the last decade? Power Rankings – WPIAL draft picks by value.

The Penguins have a chance, in 3 different ways, to make the playoffs tonight for the first time since the 2021-2022 season. A win gets it done the easy way, but they can also get in with 1 point or no points in the event of losses around the eastern conference. What a job by Dan Muse. Where does it rank among best coaching jobs in the last 10 years of Pittsburgh sports? The back-to-back Cup runs by Mike Sullivan probably take the cake. Mike Tomlin has had a few good ones, too. But Muse has turned things around faster than we ever anticipated. A season in which the Penguins did not have Sidney Crosby for 70 games or Evgeni Malkin for 60 games is on the doorstep of a playoff berth. Poni doesn’t like how Dan Muse is handling the current goaltending situation. Who should get the nod in the playoffs? A funny lookalike conversation. Pirates insider Jason Mackey joined the show. Jason thinks the reality for Paul Skenes is that he is headed to a major market within the next 5 years, but that doesn’t mean there i

Steelers insider Ray Fittipaldo from the PG joined the show. The guys asked Ray about the visitors to the Steelers in the pre-draft process, including Makai Lemon. Ray thinks there will be plenty of starting talent found on the second day of the draft. Ray speculated how the Steelers may have their WR board configured. What did the Packers WR corps look like in the Mike McCarthy heyday in Green Bay and how could the Steelers turn theirs into that? Ray shared why the Steelers may consider taking a safety in the 1st round. Ray doesn’t think the Steelers would receive a 1st round pick in exchange for TJ Watt at this point, but thinks the team’s ask would be way too high for him in a trade. Ray had an interesting name, two weeks out, that the Steelers could call at 21st overall.

A very interesting nugget shared by Gerry Dulac in his chat today – the idea of trading TJ Watt or Alex Highsmith. Right now, Nick Herbig is blocked from becoming a starter, but is due for a new deal after this upcoming season. Are they too late trying to move on from Watt? What type of return could they be looking at right now?

KDKA TV’s Bob Pompeani joined the show. Pomp is revved up for The Masters, which is underway at Augusta. How are his picks looking? Why is Patrick Reed so hated? Bob shared his ideal ‘Masters meal’ so the guys could critique it. Should the Steelers consider safety in the 1st round? Bob talked about draft coverage over the years with the selection meeting coming to town in 2 weeks. Where does the job by Dan Muse rank among coaching jobs in major PGH sports in the last decade?

The Steelers are courting the top prospect out of the MAC as Emmanuel McNeil-Warren is set to visit. The 6’3 safety was a star on the Toledo defense. He committed just one penalty in his college career. Would this be a bad move by the Steelers at 21?

Pirates insider Jason Mackey joined the show. Jason thinks the reality for Paul Skenes is that he is headed to a major market within the next 5 years, but that doesn’t mean there is zero attempt to keep him around. Will we see a revamped MLB system that could benefit the Pirates? Jason gave his take to an online battle regarding the Pirates signing of Konnor Griffin as a common practice. Did one side cave more in the Griffin negotiations? The guys didn’t like the pulling of Mitch Keller after 75 pitches, followed by the bullpen immediately giving up runs. Jason told us about Keller doing Pilates in the offseason that may have an impact on what he’s doing so far. Was Keller OK with being done after 6 innings yesterday? Jason broke down the season of Oneil Cruz so far, which has seen lowlights in the outfield, but highlights at the plate.

The Penguins have a chance, in 3 different ways, to make the playoffs tonight for the first time since the 2021-2022 season. A win gets it done the easy way, but they can also get in with 1 point or no points in the event of losses around the eastern conference. What a job by Dan Muse. Where does it rank among best coaching jobs in the last 10 years of Pittsburgh sports? The back-to-back Cup runs by Mike Sullivan probably take the cake. Mike Tomlin has had a few good ones, too. But Muse has turned things around faster than we ever anticipated. A season in which the Penguins did not have Sidney Crosby for 70 games or Evgeni Malkin for 60 games is on the doorstep of a playoff berth.

PM Team FULL Show 4-8-26

It was such a notable day in Pirates history, there were fans asking Bob Nutting for his autograph. Who would have expected that? His approval rating may never be higher than it is right now. The Pirates had an aggressive approach this offseason, but have they completely flipped some of their biggest haters? 93.7 The Fan Sports Director Jeff Hathhorn joined the show. Some folks found a way to take the comments from Paul Skenes in a negative light after the ace said Konnor Griffin will be the ‘face’ of the franchise for years to come. Jeff doesn’t think that was a move by Skenes to indicate he won’t be around long. Why did Griffin get the day off, until he entered it as a pinch-hitter late? Jeff was stunned to see Bob Nutting signing autographs before the finale at PNC Park today. Judge Donny – Should Paul Skenes sign a 4-year, $140M deal, if offered by the Pirates?

It was still a banner day to be a Pirates fan as Konnor Griffin signed his 9-year extension with the club that will keep him here until 2034. Is this current group capable of winning something big? The Pirates have Griffin for nearly a decade and have Paul Skenes under control for a few more years. Are we still finding fans that can’t help but be negative about this? How do fans feel about the future of Pirates baseball? What word or two would you use to describe your feelings on the Pirates after the Konnor Griffin extension Pittsburgh native, Bethel Park grad and Waynesburg product Mason Miller got the final out today at PNC Park.

Mike Florio from Pro Football Talk joined the show. The tabloid story of the day was surrounding Mike Vrabel and Dianna Russini from The Athletic. Mike couldn’t too much about the situation himself, but said as much as he could. 15 days away from the NFL Draft and the Steelers have no indication on what is happening with Aaron Rodgers, which feels a whole lot like last year. How much attention does Rodgers want before he makes his decision? Mike isn’t sure if he will be in town for the draft, which he hasn’t attended in about a decade because his duties that night are easier to perform from home. It’s a final at PNC Park as the Padres take the series over the Pirates in an 8-2 game. Mitch Keller looked good again – his third consecutive quality start to open the season, allowing 0 runs in 6 innings on 75 pitches. The bullpen was a disaster. Is the idea that Don Kelly wants to save Keller for later in the season? Poni doesn’t think Keller is the guy that needs to be coming out of games early if he’s rolling.