Starkey & Mueller

PM Team FULL Show 6-4-26

If the Pirates bullpen played to even an average level, they would be 12 games over .500 this season. Poni wondered if the Pirates should kick the tires on a Bailey Falter reunion. The biggest insider in all of baseball suggested the Pirates could still deal Carmen Mlodzinski, but would that make sense since the team needs bullpen arms more than anything? What if a Mlodzinski trade netted a true late-game reliever in return? With the Pirates recent success of trading away borderline starters, should they try it again? Steelers insider Ray Fittipaldo from the PG joined the show. After Nick Herbig signed his extension with the Steelers, are Alex Highsmith or TJ Watt on the block? Was Highsmith actually ‘sick’ yesterday when he missed practice? Ray said we won’t really know how Highsmith will feel about this unless he openly breaks his silence before training camp. Ray doesn’t expect the recent signings to deter the Steelers from signing Joey Porter Jr. to a new deal. Is Pat Freiermuth at risk of losing more r

Darnell Washington has signed a 4-year extension with the Steelers. The Steelers also signed Robert Tonyan to a one-year deal, as he reunites with Aaron Rodgers in the QBs final year. What do these moves mean for Pat Freiermuth, who is still getting paid $12 million a year? The Steelers are now tying a lot of money into both Washigton and Nick Herbig, neither of who have started the majority of games in their career. Steve Palazzolo from the 33rd Team joined the guys to discuss some of the Steelers recent moves. Steve says that he would not give Joey Porter Jr Surtain or Gardner money, but he is worth a little over $20 a year. Steve does not think that Highsmith would be worth a ton of draft-pick compensation if the Steelers were to trade him. Donny Football Debrief – Caleb Williams is the Madden 27 cover athlete.

The Pirates have now lost 4 straight Paul Skenes starts. Although Skenes did not get much help from the defense yesterday, Poni thinks that he still needs to find a way to not throw 109 pitches through 4.2 innings. Mullsy thinks that Skenes has not been as sharp these past couple starts than he has been throughout his career. He has thrown 20 innings through his last 4 starts. Apparently, Paul Skenes is using the wrong muscles when he pitches, according to some twitter account Poni found. The guys go more in depth on what could be wrong with Paul Skenes. Callers chime in on the Pirates’ ace. Power Rankings – 5 best Pirates relievers of all-time. Poni leaves off Tony Watson, which the guys are surprised by.

Another blown game for the Buccos last night and this one could take the cake for the 2026 season. The Pirates led 8-3 in the 7th inning in Houston, and wound up losing 11-9. Paul Skenes couldn’t get out of the 5th inning then multiple bullpen arms got rocked, including ones that were previously pretty reliable. Are the lights too bright for Don Kelly? How much is on Ben Cherington? How does the blame get divvied up with the Pirates bullpen blunders? Pirates insider Jason Mackey joined the show. Jason told us Carmen Mlodzinski will pitch tonight and will ‘piggy-back’ off Jared Jones, who starts tonight. What will his role look like out of the ‘pen? The guys wondered if the role of Wilber Dotel will grow since he’s one of the few arms that has been consistently reliable. Jason mentioned Joey Bart as a trade piece the Pirates could have once he gets healthy. Jason has doubts if improving the bullpen from the outside is doable. Who are some other arms in the organization that could help the big league club?

Steelers insider Ray Fittipaldo from the PG joined the show. After Nick Herbig signed his extension with the Steelers, are Alex Highsmith or TJ Watt on the block? Was Highsmith actually ‘sick’ yesterday when he missed practice? Ray said we won’t really know how Highsmith will feel about this unless he openly breaks his silence before training camp. Ray doesn’t expect the recent signings to deter the Steelers from signing Joey Porter Jr. to a new deal. Is Pat Freiermuth at risk of losing more reps? Ray isn’t sure if Robert Tonyan makes the team even though he signed a deal with the Steelers today. Is Yahya Black a future nose tackle in the Steelers defense? Ray projected around $25M/year for Porter.

Donny Football Debrief – Caleb Williams is the Madden 27 cover athlete.

Steve Palazzolo joins the guys to discuss some of the Steelers recent moves. Steve says that he would not give Joey Porter Jr Surtain or Gardner money, but he is worth a little over $20 a year. Steve does not think that Highsmith would be worth a ton of draft-pick compensation if the Steelers were to trade him.

Power Rankings – 5 best Pirates relievers of all-time.

The Pirates have now lost 4 straight Paul Skenes starts. Although Skenes did not get much help from the defense yesterday, Poni thinks that he still needs to find a way to not throw 109 pitches through 4.2 innings. Mullsy thinks that Skenes has not been as sharp these past couple starts than he has been throughout his career. He has thrown 20 innings through his last 4 starts. Apparently Paul Skenes is using the wrong muscles when he pitches, according to some twitter account Poni found.

Pirates insider Jason Mackey joined the show. Jason told us Carmen Mlodzinski will pitch tonight and will ‘piggy-back’ off Jared Jones, who starts tonight. What will his role look like out of the ‘pen? The guys wondered if the role of Wilber Dotel will grow since he’s one of the few arms that has been consistently reliable. Jason mentioned Joey Bart as a trade piece the Pirates could have once he gets healthy. Jason has doubts if improving the bullpen from the outside is doable. Who are some other arms in the organization that could help the big league club? Are we at the end of the line with Dennis Santana?

Another blown game for the Buccos last night and this one could take the cake for the 2026 season. The Pirates led 8-3 in the 7th inning in Houston, and wound up losing 11-9. Paul Skenes couldn’t get out of the 5th inning then multiple bullpen arms got rocked, including ones that were previously pretty reliable. Are the lights too bright for Don Kelly? How much is on Ben Cherington?

PM Team FULL Show 6-3-26

4 straight wins for the Buccos with the offense on fire. Are you starting to believe? The offense has scored 35 runs in the last 4 games. Are the bullpen arms still worrying you? The guys praised Wilber Dotel. Can you see this team being in the World Series? 93.7 The Fan Sports Director Jeff Hathhorn joined the show. Jeff confirmed that Alex Highsmith was in the building today after he missed practice. The miss came the day after Nick Herbig signed his new contract with the Steelers, which created some skepticism. Jeff told us the team is not exploring trades including Highsmith because they really want to get all 3 players on the field at the same time. Jeff explained the difference between Mike McCarthy and Mike Tomlin when it comes to practice structure. How will things look with their defense? Jeff said the team is going to Kennywood tomorrow. Judge Donny – Will Paul Skenes finish 1st or 2nd in the Cy Young voting?

A read & react to some Steelers sound today from mandatory minicamp – the likes of Cam Heyward, TJ Watt and Nick Herbig shared answers with the media. ALL ACCESS w/ Aditi – The guys asked Aditi about getting to work with Russell Wilson this fall with the NFL on CBS. Aditi remembers working with Nate Burleson in his early days of television. Aditi gave her reaction to the Steelers extending Nick Herbig. What does it mean for the fellow pass rushers? What does it mean for others up for contracts? Aditi gets the sense that Aaron Donald will play football this season. Donny Football Debrief – The Steelers are reportedly in talks with Keeanu Benton on a new deal. He shares an agent with Nick Herbig and would be the second player of the 2023 draft class to get a deal.

Mike McCarthy said Nick Herbig ‘deserved’ his new deal with the Steelers, after inking a contract that makes him one of the highest-paid ‘reserve’ players in NFL history. It’s a $100M+ deal for the Steelers third edge rusher on the depth chart. Are the Steelers going to make it more of a true 3-man rotation if they don’t deal TJ Watt or Alex Highsmith? It’s hard to take down the snaps for the two players ahead of Herbig. What does the Nick Herbig contract mean for Joey Porter Jr. or other players that are up for new deals with the Steelers? Is there a real chance Aaron Donald comes back after the Rams traded for Myles Garrett? Mike Florio from Pro Football Talk joined the show. Mike thinks it will be difficult for Aaron Donald to return to the NFL because it’s so much easier said than done. But does he ponder it a little bit more because Myles Garrett will now face a lot of the attention? Mike reacted to the Nick Herbig deal and thinks the Steelers are opening up business for Alex Highsmith or TJ Watt. He

One day after Nick Herbig inked his $100M+ extension with the Steelers, Alex Highsmith missed practice. Steelers PR quickly got ahead of the narrative stating that Highsmith was ‘sick.’ If a team approached the Steelers about trading Highsmith in exchange for a 2nd round pick, should they say Yes? Are fans buying the ‘illness’ excuse for Alex Highsmith today at practice? One legendary caller said the Steelers are the ‘North Korea of the NFL’ because they have an answer for everything. Bucco Minute – Another big night for the Pirates last night, beating the Astros 10-6 in Houston. Home runs from Endy Rodriguez, Oneil Cruz and Brandon Lowe. Mike Burrows started for the Astros and did his usual (not great). The guys can’t get over how big the Buccos have won a trade. Should the Pirates prioritize Cruz or Lowe if they need to pay someone $200M?

93.7 The Fan Sports Director Jeff Hathhorn joined the show. Jeff confirmed that Alex Highsmith was in the building today after he missed practice. The miss came the day after Nick Herbig signed his new contract with the Steelers, which created some skepticism. Jeff told us the team is not exploring trades including Highsmith because they really want to get all 3 players on the field at the same time. Jeff explained the difference between Mike McCarthy and Mike Tomlin when it comes to practice structure. How will things look with their defense? Jeff said the team is going to Kennywood tomorrow.

4 straight wins for the Buccos with the offense on fire. Are you starting to believe? The offense has scored 35 runs in the last 4 games. Are the bullpen arms still worrying you? The guys praised Wilber Dotel. Can you see this team being in the World Series?

ALL ACCESS w/ Aditi – The guys asked Aditi about getting to work with Russell Wilson this fall with the NFL on CBS. Aditi remembers working with Nate Burleson in his early days of television. Aditi gave her reaction to the Steelers extending Nick Herbig. What does it mean for the fellow pass rushers? What does it mean for others up for contracts? Aditi gets the sense that Aaron Donald will play football this season.