Former Pirates coach talks about faith, family at parish
BUTLER TWP — As a child enrolled in Catholic school, Rich Donnelly said he had a speech impediment; the two places where he didn’t stutter were the baseball field and the altar.
The former Pittsburgh Pirates coach, Steubenville, Ohio, native and motivational speaker addressed a crowd gathered at St. Conrad Church of All Saints Parish on Saturday, sharing how he recommitted to his Catholic faith following the deaths of his daughter, Amy, and son, Michael.
Amy died in 1993 of a brain tumor at the age of 17. When he learned about her illness, Donnelly said he was faced with a crisis of faith.
“I remember going out in the parking lot and I was so mad at God and all my faith sort of left me,” he said. “I was so mad. Why not me? Why her? She didn’t do nothing. She’s 17 years old.”
That January, Amy lapsed into a coma. One morning, Donnelly was told she wouldn’t make it through the day.
“All through my life, and my career in baseball, basketball and everything, I thought I was a pretty tough guy,” he said. “I thought I was tough. I thought I could handle anything. And when you have to walk in and your daughter can’t react, she’s in a coma, she can hear you, and you have to tell her goodbye — that will buckle you to your core.”
“So I thought I was tough,” he said. “I always tell people that there’s two kinds of people in the world. Those that are humble and those that are about to be. And I was about to be.”
Donnelly shared how the family motto was inspired by Amy. A few years after her death, remembering the motto would inspire him to draw closer to his faith.
During a 1992 playoff game, which her father was coaching, Amy noticed that he would yell instructions to runners. She asked, “Dad, what are you telling them? That the chicken runs at midnight, or what?”
“The Chicken Runs at Midnight” became a running joke and lasting motto in the family. After Amy’s death, the phrase was engraved on her tombstone.
In 1997, as a member of the Florida Marlins, Donnelly met Craig Counsell, a player one of his sons nicknamed “Chicken.” When Counsell scored, winning the World Series for the Marlins, Donnelly’s sons pointed to the stadium clock, telling him, “The Chicken ran at midnight, Dad.”
Hearing the phrase, Donnelly said he believed Amy was sending him a message from heaven. The experience felt like a jolt, he said, and helped him redevote himself to his Catholic faith.
In 2018, his son, Michael was struck by a vehicle after he stopped to help a motorist push their car off the highway. He died shielding a woman from the impact.
“I don’t go to church to ask anymore,” Donnelly said. “I’ve asked enough and I’ve received more than I ever hoped for. I go to church now for two reasons: to thank God for everything in my life, to thank God for (my children). The way they taught me. And I go (to church) to ask for strength because I need strength and that’s the only place I have found that. I didn’t find it in a book. I didn’t find it in a motivational meeting. I didn’t find it in baseball, but with God.”
The event was sold out with around 300 attendees, organizers said. A meet-and-greet with Donnelly followed the 7 p.m. presentation.
After the event, people were able to purchase copies of “The Chicken Runs at Midnight” written by Tom Friend about Donnelly’s experience. It is going to be made into a movie, Donnelly said during his presentation.
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