Steve Blass, Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Fame pitcher, recalls how his mental health was affected after not being able to pitch anymore following his diagnosis of what is now called Steve Blass disease during a series of mental health programs created by Allegheny Health Network’s Chill Mobile in conjunction with the Pittsburgh Pirates Charities in Cranberry Township on Monday, Oct. 7, 2024. Rob McGraw/Butler Eagle

Former Pirates Hall of Fame pitcher Steve Blass, 82, won 103 games for the Pirates over the span of 10 seasons.

He also played a role in the Pirates’ 1971 World Series over the Baltimore Orioles when he pitched two complete games.

Blass was beloved by Pittsburgh sports fans, but his playing career ended in 1975 when he lost the ability to pitch accurately.

When speaking Monday on a mental health panel at South College Pittsburgh in Cranberry Township, Blass recalled crying at 4 a.m. “knowing I wasn’t going to be a Pittsburgh Pirate anymore.”

What got him through? His family, friends and the people of Pittsburgh.

While mourning the closing of one door, Blass found another opened. He spent another 34 years working as a Pirates color commentator.

Blass became a household name for his baseball in the region, but maybe was lesser known — before Tuesday’s front page article on the Butler Eagle — for his efforts to advocate for proper management of mental health.

He encouraged those gathered for the Monday panel to “give a minute to somebody.”

“Put a hand on a shoulder or stop and spend a minute instead of just walking by,” he said.

Events like the one on Monday, in a collaboration between Allegheny Health Network and Pittsburgh Pirates Charities, are so important to destigmatizing conversations on mental health.

It’s a good reminder that even people like Blass must take time to care for their mental health.

— TL