Yeah, you know what it is: Pittsburgh sports are back. While the Pittsburgh Steelers, Penguins, or Pirates may not take home any actual gold this year, it may just be the golden year for Steel City to climb back up its bridges.
NFL DRAFT
Pittsburgh is back on the map. From April 23rd-25th, all eyes were on the Burgh and inside the minds of those who fear us most. Football fans gathered from across the country and the world, as the National Football League hosted the 2026 draft at Acrisure Stadium (although it’s still “Heinz” to me and many other ‘Yinzers’). With three-quarters of a million people that visited the free weekend-long draft in Pittsburgh, an unimaginable amount of sports revenue came our way. Not to mention, showcasing our strong culture to visitors being “The Football Town,” as stated by Pittsburgh Native Pat McAfee in the latest NFL Films documentary with U.S. Steel, VisitPITTSBURGH, and, of course, the Pittsburgh Steelers.
What was once one of America’s top football teams in the NFL, the Steelers, received the opportunity to remind people that we remain surrounded by legends, greatness, and plenty of potential. As far as actual draft picks go, the Steelers got the 21st — I’d say it’s a happy middle. While we may not have gotten the best of the best this year for rookies or transfers, it means we didn’t absolutely suck last year.
PRODOGIES TO PLAYOFFS
Win or lose, the Pittsburgh Penguins have had their most successful season since 2022, making it back to the Stanley Cup playoffs. Pittsburgh is that city that takes chances on rookies and turns them into gold. Take Ben Kindel, a Canadian ice hockey player drafted at eighteen who played his first game on October 7, 2025. Now, the Pens just happen to come back to claim the cup… sound familiar? That’s because the center and youngest to be named Captain in National Hockey League history, Sidney Crosby, or “Sid the Kid,” was also drafted young — just 19 years old. The Pens took a chance on Crosby, and it may have been the greatest investment or number one pick in the Pens’ favor, making fans fall in love with the team, and Crosby himself. Crosby stays widely considered top 10 in many playbooks, etching his name into every record out there.
As for Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, and even Crosby, they are now sort of “old.” WOAH, who said that? They’ve been going at it on the ice as friends, brothers, and teammates since 2006, and are considered the largest tenure trio in North American Sports history. That’s 20 consecutive seasons, and maybe this is the core reason why no other team has come close to the number of playoff berths as the Pens — with 17 in the past 20 years. Although led by this old trio, this could be the last time we see it intact, as the rumor has it that the three veterans’ careers will come to an end this season or the next. Although you never know with Crosby, as of April 2026, he secured 21 consecutive points per game season, showing consistent stats in his game and quite literally beating his own prime every year.
So how did the Pens make it into the playoffs this year? Maybe this move helped. In December 2021, a Boston-based ownership group, Fenway Sports Group, bought the Pittsburgh Penguins from the Lemieux ownership group for about $900 million. Then in December 2025, Fenway Sports Group agreed to sell the Pens to the Hoffmann Family of Companies for 1.7 BILLION?! Now in 2026, the Pens have officially hired rookie head coach, Dan Muse, after firing two-time head-coach Stanley Cup-winning Mike Sullivan. While this move may be controversial, it doesn’t hurt knowing that the tables have turned in favor of the Pens, and have finally factored into the Pens making it back to the playoffs.
BUCS BEST BET
Mmm, have you seen those sexy uniforms? Yeah, the ones that are actually on brand for the Bucs? “Pirates,” now read in sharp-edged font (almost like swords) and truly set the tone for the season. While they may only wear this uniform on Fridays at home, I feel like it was designed just for this era of toughness, grit, and revenge. Ladies and gentlemen, come on down and welcome the number one prospect of baseball, KONNOR GRIFFIN!
With a nine-year contract for $140 Million, the 19-year-old is officially marked as the largest deal and number one guarantee in the franchise of Pittsburgh Pirates history—not too bad for a rookie. To put into perspective how good Griffin has it, he’s the first teenage position player to debut in Major League Baseball since Juan Soto in 2018, the New York Met Outfielder with over 1,000 hits, nearly 250 home runs, and one World Series win (with the Washington Nationals). As a Pirates fan myself, I’d love to note the fact it’s looking scary for the Nationals after the Pirates won that 16 run game.
Griffin is already looking like the next Paul Skenes, someone who’s been praised more than enough during his two short years with the Bucs. Skenes is an Ace-level “full swing and miss” pitcher whose franchise and NIL truly benefits the Pirates franchise. Since the Pirates have signed the MLB’s current best pitcher, Skenes, who won the Cy Young Award his rookie year in 2025, it shows that the Bucs are a force to be reckoned with. You know what Pirates say though, “X marks the spot,” and it lands perfectly on PNC Park.
Oh, and by the way, USA Today still ranks the Pirates home stadium, PNC Park, the best baseball stadium in the US between its view of Steel City and undeniable fanbase. I’d say after years of misery, travesty, and darkness, the Pirates haven’t just dug themselves out of the dugout, but are back to sailing their ship for a comeback. Griffin has officially joined the young core team next to Skenes, Bubba Chandler, Jarred Jones, Henry Davis, and Oneil Cruz, surrounded by veteran all-stars Bryan Reynolds, Brandon Lowe and Ryan O’Hearn. Soon, they’ll aim to return to the postseason for the first time since 2015. Hang on tight to your planks — we may just witness the Bucs secure their World Series berth since 1979!