The eight worst things about Pittsburgh sports in 2018

By Joe Smeltzer
With 2018 in the books, it's time to reflect on the best, and worst of the Pittsburgh Sports Scene. Let's get the worst out of the way.

8. The last days of Stallings
Jan-March

Kevin Stallings' Pitt career summed up in a picture (TheBlackSheepOnline)

Depending on how the Jeff Capel era turns out, 2018 could be remembered as a pretty good year for Pitt basketball. Everything that happened before Capel's hiring, however, stunk.

The Panthers went winless in the ACC, fired Kevin Stallings after just two seasons, and created some drama regarding Stallings' buyout.

Although it looks to be on the upswing now, the basketball program has been, for the most part, a mess since Jamie Dixon left, and the height of that mess was one of the low points of Pittsburgh sports in 2018.

7. 34-6
Jul. 2/6 

The fact that Tanner Anderson appeared in a 17-1 loss to the Dodgers is telling of how that game went (photo creds to TribLive)

2018 wasn't a bad year for the Pirates. It wasn't great by any stretch, but nonetheless, it was a far cry from the catastrophe many were proclaiming after the team traded Andrew McCutchen (more on that later) and Gerrit Cole.

The low point of this season from an on-field standpoint took place during a five-game losing streak in early July that started in LA and ended at PNC Park.

It wasn't the streak itself, but rather two games, in particular, that earned a spot on this list. The first was the loss that opened the losing streak, as the Pirates dropped a 17-1 stinker Jul. 2 at Dodger Stadium. The second loss was a 17-5 nail biter to Philly at PNC Park four days later.

The Bucs responded from this slump and went 42-32 the rest of the way, but man, giving up 17 runs (twice) is brutal.

6. Two out of three ain't bad

Photo creds to The Denver Post

All good things must come to an end, and this past May, the Penguins run as Stanley Cup champions, and their dominance over the Washington Capitals, were both laid to rest May 7.

While there's no shame in falling short of a third straight Stanley Cup, watching the team that Pittsburgh had owned for so long celebrate on the PPG Paints Arena ice didn't sit well, and thus, the Penguins playoff exit was one of 2018.


5. 51-6

I'm a Penn State fan, so this was pretty sweet. For many of my friends, however, it must have sucked.

4. Gregory Polanco's injury

Photo creds to MLB.Com

This might seem like a curious entry on this list, but because of the ridiculous way it happened and how it could affect the Pirates in 2019, Polanco's injury deserves to rank among the worst of 2018.

For the most part, this was the best season of Polanco's career, but it all went away Sept. 17. It was a careless slide that resulted in a torn labrum and a 7-9 month absence. Because of poor fundamentals, the Pirates will be without their regular right fielder for at least half of 2019.

3. The Lev Bell saga

The Steelers expected a disgruntled Le'Veon Bell to report to work. He never did (photo creds to Sporting News)

While it ended up far down the list of the Steelers concerns and the team played pretty well through it-- it was 6-2-1 before the possibility of Bell showing up in 2018 was squashed-- all the drama surrounding Le'Veon Bell was annoying, and not something the team needed. The whole "will he, won't he and if he will, when will he?" saga was exhausting, and not something any Steelers fan will miss.

2. The end of an era

Trading Andrew McCutchen signified the end of the era that resurrected baseball in Pittsburgh (photo creds to NBC Sports).

From a baseball standpoint, the Andrew McCutchen trade worked out decently well for the Pirates. In exchange for Cutch, Pittsburgh picked its future setup man in Kyle Crick and subsequently traded for left fielder Corey Dickerson, who outperformed McCutchen in 2018. Still, seeing the Pirates move on from the face of their franchise and the catalyst of their losing streak was painful, and wasn't an optimal start to the year.

1. The last month of the Steelers season
It's fresh in our minds. It sucked, and everybody in Pittsburgh knows it. The Steelers losing four of their last six games and missing the playoffs was unequivocally  the worst thing that happened in 2018, and thus, this list, like the season, is done.