The Penguins just won the Stanley Cup.  Four months earlier, the Steelers won the Super Bowl.  There has been a lot of fan dissent over the trade of Nate McLouth to the Atlanta Braves by the Pirates, which is to some degree warranted.  It's difficult for a fanbase to watch over an eight month period when an organization slings away productive players such as Jason Bay, Xavier Nady, Damaso Marte, and McLouth.  Doubtless, more trades of the unpopular variety are to come.  Jack Wilson trade rumors have been prevalent for the past three seasons at least, and Adam LaRoche(he of wavering popularity) will probably go by the deadline as well...

The Steelers Super Bowl victory comes as little surprise.  The organization is arguably the class of the NFL, and as far as marketing, popularity, and parity go, the NFL is arguably the class of North American sports.  The Penguins brand new Stanley Cup victory is a bit more surprising, but not shocking in the least.  Anyone who has read anything about Sidney Crosby before or after his being drafted by Pittsburgh knows that the kid was eventually going to captain a Cup-winning team, if not several.  Obviously, the Pirates are a long way from reaching that pinnacle in their league, but some hope can be garnered, I think, from this town's recent success.  The previous management of the Pirates often cited the fact that Pittsburgh is a small market for its teams lack of success.  Granted, the lack of a collective bargaining agreement and a salary cap make this more of a truth for Baseball than for Hockey and/or Football, but the success of Pittsburgh's Hockey and Football teams coupled with the recent relative success of Baseball clubs such as Milwaukee and Tampa Bay renders this sentiment somewhat irrelevant.  The Pirates have had a good draft the past couple years, gathering talent in the first round like Pedro Alvarez and Tony Sanchez.  They have young talent - take note, as I'm sure you have, of the presence in the current outfield of Andrew McCutchen.  I know that it's a stretch to say that the Bucs are in a similar position as were the Penguins around the time Marc-Andre Fleury and Sidney Crosby were drafted, and I know it takes a lot more legwork and determination to field a competitive team in the current environment of Major League Baseball than in Hockey or Football.  I didn't get to watch very much of Sunday's 6-3 victory over the first-place Tigers, but I don't think I'd be completely out of line to say that the team was energized a bit by the presentation of North America's oldest trophy prior to the game, and the fact that the team from this town was able to obtain the pinnnacle of their sport with a roster that is comprised of relative babies, age-wise, when compared to the rest of their league. 

The Steelers will remain competitive for a long time.  Mike Tomlin's not going away, Ben Roethlisberger is inked for the considerable future, and they have a record for drafting the right people even if they don't catch anyone's attention on draft day.  The Penguins will remain competitive for a long time.  Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Jordan Staal, and Marc-Andre Fleury aren't leaving any time soon, and Ray Shero seems to have some kind of inherent ability to bring in the right pieces at the right time.  Is it such a preposterous idea that the Coonelly/Huntington plan may start to bear fruit before too much longer?  Might we soon be a city with not one, not two, but three pro teams in contention for a championship, with the finest new facilities in PNC Park, Heinz Field, and Consol Energy Center?

I apologize, if indeed an apology is necessary, for the homeristic tilt to this post.  It's an exciting time in Pittsburgh though.  We are the City of Champions once again.  The only glaring difference is that the last time such was the case, the Pirates were a key ingredient.