Franchise Notes

In Pittsburgh, Finder & Kovacevic reported the Pirates have "terminated eight-full time employees on the business side of their operations, through layoffs or buyouts." The cuts, which amount to about 3% of the team's business staff, were made as "part of what the team described as a 'restructuring' to increase efficiency." But Pirates President Frank Coonelly said, "After the restructuring, we still have more full-time employees in revenue-generating positions than at this point last year." Coonelly's Exec Assistant, June Schaut, was among those "accepting a buyout," while "most of the rest were in sales" (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 5/30).

Rooney (r) Will Step Down As Steelers Chair Once Senate Confirms Appointment

MUSICAL CHAIRS: In Pittsburgh, Ed Bouchette reported Steelers Chair Dan Rooney will step down from the position once the Senate confirms him as the Ambassador to Ireland, "likely to happen in June." Rooney likely will carry the title as Chairman Emeritus, while his son, Art Rooney II, will continue in his role as President. Meanwhile, another "major change in the franchise will be the official closing on the restructured ownership," which now is "scheduled sometime later in June" (PITTSBURGH POST-GAZETTE, 5/31).

UNINSPIRED HIRE? In Philadelphia, John Gonzalez writes the 76ers' hiring of Eddie Jordan as coach, at best, "will be met with shrugs and indifference, and people will keep ignoring the Sixers." At worst, it will be "seen as gross corporate cronyism -- an unimaginative move by an uninspiring franchise with no direction." While no one "buys tickets to see the head coach," the coach "can make people pay attention to something they stopped caring about a while ago." It "seems unlikely that Jordan ... will help reenergize a dissatisfied fan base" (PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 6/1).

PAT ON THE BACK: FOXSPORTS.com's Adam Schein presented the Web site's "first annual NFL organization rankings," which grades each team in eight categories: owner, front office, head coach, coaching staff, QB, offense, defense and intangibles. The Patriots finished No. 1 in the analysis, as Robert Kraft is a "fantastic owner who knows how to market his team while letting" coach Bill Belichick "run everything dealing with football." The Patriots "don't just top these rankings, they are the model franchise in all of professional sports" (FOXSPORTS.com, 5/29).