Thursday’s “First Call” features details about Aaron Rodgers’ new contract with the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Pirates are getting worn out by a Pittsburgh native during their series with St. Louis.
A former Pirates relief pitcher has found new life in Cleveland, and the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins have a chance to advance in the AHL playoffs.
Money matters
NFL insider Jordan Schultz is reporting details of Aaron Rodgers’ contract.
ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter previously stated that Rodgers’ 2026 deal with the Steelers was going to be worth $22 million to $23 million with incentives.
According to Schultz, those incentives will be worth $625,000 for each playoff victory. He also has to play 75% of the snaps.
Aaron Rodgers has $2.5M in incentives in his contract with the Steelers, per sources.
If he plays 75% of the regular season snaps, he can earn the following:
⚫️$625K for a Wild Card win
????$625K for a Divisional Round win
⚫️$625K for an AFC Championship win
????$625K for a Super… pic.twitter.com/S0RjLO7jLk— Jordan Schultz (@Schultz_Report) May 20, 2026
In 2025, Rodgers played 96% of the snaps, missing just one game. The team lost at home in the Wild Card round of the AFC playoffs. According to Spotrac.com, Rodgers’ cash payout last year was $14.1 million.
Quick turnaround
After a lousy start to their three-game series in St. Louis, the Pirates are in a position to take two of three from the Cardinals heading into Thursday afternoon’s game.
The Pirates will throw Braxton Ashcraft against St. Louis’ Dustin May. Both are right-handers. Ashcraft owns a 2-2 record with an ERA of 3.09. May is 3-4 with a 4.81 mark.
Ashcraft had a tough outing against the Cards a few weeks ago. He was knocked out after 4⅓ innings at PNC Park on April 28, yielding six earned runs, nine baserunners and two homers. He took the loss en route to an 11-7 Pirates’ defeat.
May, meanwhile, was effective against the Pirates during that series on the North Shore. On April 27, he got a win as the Cards danced to a 4-2 victory, part of their four-game sweep that week. May only allowed two earned runs over six innings despite giving up seven hits and two walks.
So far in this series, the Pirates lost Game 1 on Tuesday in 10 innings (9-6). Then they shut out St. Louis 7-0 on Wednesday night.
One thing the Pirates have been unable to do is contain JJ Wetherholt. The Mars native is 10-24 in six games against the Pirates so far in 2026. The rookie second baseman has three doubles, three homers and three walks for an OPS of 1.417 against his hometown team.
Carmen Mlodzinski after getting JJ Wetherholt to ground out:
“We got him out!” https://t.co/lC03CQCPL6pic.twitter.com/JlraCRlX5A
— Platinum Key (@PlatinumKey13) May 21, 2026
First pitch on Thursday is at 1:15 p.m.
Related
• Tim Benz: Bet on ‘old dog’ Mason Rudolph learning some ‘new tricks’
• Tim Benz: No need for Aaron Rodgers to worry. Expectations for Steelers aren’t high enough to be ‘tempered’
• Steelers OT Broderick Jones determined to get back but doesn’t know when
Go figure
The Pirates’ bullpen was excellent Wednesday, allowing just one hit over four shutout innings following Carmen Mlodzinski’s exit. The five Bucco arms combined for a 7-0 win.
That hasn’t been the case often this year. The bullpen has taken a lot of heat for an up-and-down start to 2026.
Surprisingly, one pitcher that the unit misses right now is Colin Holderman. His Pittsburgh career ended after 24 games and a 7.01 ERA in 2025. After being designated for assignment by the Bucs in November, Holderman signed a contract with Cleveland for $1.5 million.
So far this year, Holderman has a 1.50 ERA and is 2-0 with just four runs allowed in 13 games.
Colin Holderman has been a heckuva addition for the Guardians.
He enters with two on and one out and strikes out two to send this game to the 10th.
He entered today with a 1.56 ERA and a 0.75 WHIP with 19 strikeouts in 17 1/3 innings. pic.twitter.com/ByUtcmjQrP
— Tim Stebbins (@tim_stebbins) May 21, 2026
Holderman got the victory Wednesday night as the Guardians beat Detroit 3-2 in 10 innings.
Close it ’aht!
The Pittsburgh Penguins AHL affiliate in Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is looking to end its Divisional Final playoff series. The Penguins can close out the best-of-five in Game 4 on Thursday night at Springfield.
The Penguins beat the Thunderbirds 2-1 on Tuesday. Bill Zonnon and Rutger McGroarty scored.
Goalie Sergei Murashov notched 27 saves on 28 shots as well.
If the Thunderbirds force a decisive fifth game, it’ll be back at Mohegan Arena in Wilkes-Barre on Saturday night at 6:05 p.m. Thursday’s faceoff in Springfield is slated for 7:05 p.m.
The winner gets Toronto or Cleveland in a best-of-seven Eastern Conference Final with a spot in the Calder Cup finals on the line.