Post-Gazette Pirates insiders Jason Mackey and Colin Beazley break down the latest rumors behind GM Ben Cherington's pursuit of free agent Kazuma Okamoto.
What are Jason and Colin hearing? Could the Pirates really be making another splash on the open market? Or will the Japanese star sign with one of the various other teams interested in his services? Would the signing make sense? Do Jason and Colin think it could really happen?
Our duo tackles those topics, then discusses the best Pirates of the quarter-century as 2026 gets underway.
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The Post-Gazette's King Jemison breaks down the storylines surrounding the Penguins' current three-game win streak, their longest since October.
Which players have sparked this recent good run of form? How has Blake Lizotte's return from injury helped the team? How key was the penalty kill from names like Lizotte, Connor Dewar and Noel Acciari in Thursday's overtime win over the Red Wings? How sweet was it for Kris Letang to get the winning goal in his 1,200th NHL game?
King also talks about the Penguins named to their home countries' Olympic rosters. Can Sidney Crosby captain Canada to a goal medal? Or will Erik Karlsson and Rickard Rakell play spoiler for Team Sweden? King tackles those topics and more.
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On the Friday episode of the North Shore Drive podcast presented by Edgar Snyder & Associates and FanDuel, host King Jemison and Paul Zeise look ahead to Sunday's AFC North championship game between the Steelers and Ravens. What would be better for the Steelers — losing and seeing real change in the organization, or winning the AFC North? Plus, what concerns do we have about T.J. Watt's return and the offense without DK Metcalf and Darnell Washington?
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On the Wednesday episode of The PG Penguins Show, presented by FanDuel, Post-Gazette insiders King Jemison and Jason Mackey look on a busy 2025 for the Penguins. What were some of the biggest storylines of the year? Tristan Jarry is out and Stuart Skinner is in. Is this team leaving 2025 better than they were at the start of the year? We also, of course, talked some about the current winning streak. Later, we look ahead to a fascinating 2026 for the Penguins. First, some talk about the Yegor Chinakhov trade and what we thought. Then, we chat about the team's playoff chances, whether they'll make a big trade and the players representing their country at the Olympics including Sidney Crosby, Erik Karlsson and Rickard Rakell. For more sports, visit post-gazette.com.
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On the Wednesday episode of the PG Pitt Show, presented by FanDuel, host Stephen Thompson covers Pitt's rebounding problems and why there’s really no solution to them. That's bad news for the Panthers, because the outcome of essentially every game moving forward will be determined by a number of different factors, rebounding included. They know what they need to do, but aren’t capable of doing it. Thompson looks ahead at Clemson, which poses a tough matchup with its rebounding ability and 3-point defense. For more sports, visit post-gazette.com.
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On the Wednesday episode of the North Shore Drive podcast, presented by FanDuel and Edgar Snyder & Associates, host Adam Bittner welcomes Post-Gazette Steelers insider Christopher Carter to assess Aaron Rodgers' play at QB this year.
Does he deserve the "inconsistent" label after his latest performance against the Browns? Can his personnel plausibly be blamed with DK Metcalf absent? Or did should Rodgers still have been expected to do more with Kenneth Gainwell, Jaylen Warren, Adam Thielen, Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Pat Friermuth, Scotty Miller and others available as options?
Our duo tackles those questions, then talks defense. How close is the unit to living up to Mike Tomlin's preseason expectations that it be "historic." What's the biggest factor in the turnaround over the past month? Is Derrick Harmon the simple answer? Or is it more complicated than that. How much credit do Tomlin and DC Teryl Austin deserve for the secondary, which has shined with an ensemble cast that includes Jalen Ramsey, Joey Porter Jr., James Pierre, Brandin Echols, Asante Samuel Jr. and Kyle Dugger? And how many offenses remain in the AFC playoff picture that could pose problems for this group?
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Awards season has begun, and as we turn our attention to 2026, our WPIAL insiders Keith Barnes and Mike White hand out the first-ever VXies, honoring the top players, teams, coaches, performances and upsets in the 2025 calendar year!
To keep things interesting, the two only knew of the categories and made their own selections separate from each other.
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So grab some popcorn and check out the Varsity XTra Podcast, sponsored by Dave & Busters!
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Live around 5 p.m., Post-Gazette sports columnist Paul Zeise ponders the coaching matchup in the Steelers' NFL Week 18 showdown with the Baltimore Ravens that will decide the AFC North. Are the Steelers' Mike Tomlin and the Ravens' John Harbaugh coaching for their jobs in this one? Should the loser be fired for missing the playoffs? And who will be the bigger disappointment if they lose? Tomlin with major roster additions including Aaron Rodgers, DK Metcalf, Jalen Ramsey Jonnu Smith and others. And stars like T.J. Watt and Cam Heyward toward the ends of their careers? Or Harbaugh with an MVP candidate at QB in Lamar Jackson and an all-time great running back like Derrick Henry. Paul tackles those questions and more. Then gives his thoughts on Tomlin's weekly news conference.
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Post-Gazette Steelers insiders Gerry Dulac and Ray Fittipaldo recap coach Mike Tomlin's weekly news conference ahead of an NFL Week 18 matchup with the Baltimore Ravens that will decide the AFC North.
They explain that Calvin Austin III, T.J. Watt, James Pierre, Isaac Seumalo and Brandin Echols are all trending in positive directions on the injury front but that Watt, at least, may be limited in terms of snap count. They also ponder ways OC Arthur Smith can boost the offense after an ugly outing in Week 17 against the Browns. Could we see QB Aaron Rodgers attempt to use a higher tempo to keep the Ravens off-balance in the absence of DK Metcalf? Will the play calls be more sensible on crucial downs? And will RB Kenneth Gainwell be more involved without having Myles Garrett to worry about on the blocking front? Our duo tackles those questions and more.
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On the Tuesday episode of the North Shore Drive podcast, presented by FanDuel, host Noah Hiles welcomes Post-Gazette Steelers insider Ray Fittipaldo to look ahead to the team's NFL Week 18 matchup with the Baltimore Ravens that will determine the AFC North race. Will T.J. Watt be available for coach Mike Tomlin's defense with the season on the line? Or will DC Teryl Austin need to rely on Alex Highsmith, Jack Sawyer and Nick Herbig at outside linebacker onces again? And if so, are those guys ready for the challenge of slowing elite Ravens running back Derrick Henry? Our duo tackles those questions, then talks offense. How can OC Arthur Smith and QB Aaron Rodgers get more out of the unit than we saw last week against the Browns? Especially with DK Metcalf and possibly Darnell Washington out of action? Can they compensate with personnel like Marquez Valdes-Scantling, Adam Thielen, Scotty Miller, Pat Freiermuth and others? And get RBs Jaylen Warren and Kenneth Gainwell more involved? For more sports, visit post-gazette.com.
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