Protest nears

People are supposed to protest the ownership of the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday night.

Joe Tuscano, assistant sports editor for our newspaper, The Observer-Reporter, has written a column about the efforts. Click here to give a read.

Personally, I've managed to avoid paying a cent toward the Pirates ownership this year after attending probably an average of 20 times a season since PNC Park opened in 2001. Fool me six years ...

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Congratulations to Frank Thomas (500 home runs) and Craig Biggio (3,000 hits) on reaching their respective milestones yesterday.

I've heard debate today about Biggio's qualifications for the Hall of Fame. Oh, come on! Just because the guy wasn't hitting balls into the ozone with the frequency of McGwire, Sosa and Palmeiro, let's not diminish his accomplishments. He's a very well-respected player who has put in 20 years with the same team, a rarity not only in these nomadic times but in major-league history.

By the way, he has hit 286 home runs so far. He also has scored 1,821 runs, hit 658 doubles (tops among active players) and stolen 413 bases to go along with a respectable .282 lifetime batting average. And he's done all that from switching his position from catcher to second base to center field, then back to second base.

He might not make it on the first ballot, but when all is said and done, Craig Biggio deserves a plaque in Cooperstown.

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Trivia question 46 (courtesy of Bruce Brown): Who was the last 20th Century player to appear in 120 games in consecutive seasons for the same manager, but on different teams? Hint: He was an All-Star as a player and as a manager. Answer at bottom right