10 Things You Didn’t Know About Robert Nutting
The city of Pittsburgh loves its sports, and football is probably the city’s biggest draw when it comes to sports. The Pittsburgh Pirates is the city’s MLB team, and Robert Nutting has been leading the Pirates since 2007. Nutting has been an integral part in the growth and maintenance of the MLB franchise, and we believe that he has stayed through the team’s highs and lows over the years. Nutting has plans to continue the legacy in the coming years, and if you’re a Pirates fan, you should know more about your team’s owner. If you’re just otherwise curious, here are 10 things you probably didn’t know about Robert Nutting.
1. Ownership
As mentioned earlier, Nutting has been the owner of the Pirates since 2007. However, his family has actually been interested in the club since 2002. According to this news article, Nutting took over the Pirates for Kevin McClatchy. McClatchy was an owner for 11 years, and Nutting has already been leading the team longer than the previous owner. He was also chairman for 5 years before he took on the reins. Nutting is only the 7thperson to have ever taken the role of the owner since the franchise started over 130 years ago.
2. Family history
The Nutting family wasn’t always involved in the business of sports. In fact, the Nutting family was actually in the newspaper publishing business. Nutting is actually still CEO of Ogden Newspapers, Inc. The corporation is based out of Wheeling, West Virginia. It may be a major corporation now, but the newspaper company started out as a small business. Their publication includes 40 daily newspapers and various weekly newspapers. They also publish magazines and phone directories. Ogden Newspapers currently operates in about 12 states.
3. Bob
Robert Nutting has always been known by his nickname: Bob. It’s endearing; it’s normal. However, Nutting has another nickname that’s not as charming: Bottom Lin Bob. Nutting earned this nickname after he refused to spend money in order to obtain better players for the team. The entire story is recounted in this article, but the gist of it is simple. Nutting needed to spend money, but he flat out refused to do so—even after 53,000 signatures on a petition. He basically always calls the “bottom line,” hence the nickname.
4. Criticism
Continuing on with the story of Nutting’s “Bottom Line Bob” nickname, you should know that he’s actually been ranked as one of the worst owners in the history of the sport. It’s not quite the legacy that anyone would ever want to have, but unfortunately, many have that opinion about Nutting. Many people claim that Nutting is more concerned about profits than the actual state of the Pirates franchise. Despite being one of the richest owners in the league, Nutting’s team seems to always be in the bottom.
5. Business owner
Aside from being CEO of Ogden Newspapers and being the owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates, Nutting is actually involved with another business. Currently, Nutting is Chairman of Seven Springs Mountain Resort. The resort is located 50 miles outside of Pittsburgh, and it’s a profitable resort business for Nutting. In 2013, the company acquired Hidden Valley Resort for $7.5 million under the leadership of Nutting. That was certainly a good business move for Nutting because it means more money at the end of the day.
6. Education
Nutting received his bachelor’s degree from Williams College. The college is located in Williamstown, Massachusetts. He got his degree in history, which is an interesting choice for someone so adept in running and managing businesses. It’s also interesting that Nutting never went for his MBA or even a higher degree he could’ve used in publishing. Williams College is a private liberal arts college, and it’s actually known as one of the worst schools in history with regards to freedom of speech. Check this article for more details on recent Williams College events.
7. Family life
He’s primarily private about his personal life, but Nutting is actually married. His wife’s name is Leslie, and they have three daughters together. Their children, who were just teens/pre-teens when Nutting became owner, are now grown adults. They’re approximately aged around 29, 27, and 22 years old. Nutting and his whole family is very much invested in the franchise, and they are regarded usually as being passionate when it comes to the game of baseball.
8. Hobbies
It’s difficult to imagine someone as involved as Nutting having time for anything else apart from his business. But as little as we know about his private life, we do know that he makes time for some hobbies. He’s actually an outdoorsy-type person. Nutting enjoys fly-fishing and skiing. Also, he owns a twin-engine aircraft that he likes to take out for a ride. It’s definitely not a bad way to spend your day off.
9. Wheeling
Nutting has a huge connection to Wheeling, West Virginia. Wheeling is the headquarters of the Ogden Corporation, but Nutting’s ties to Wheeling goes deeper than that. He was actually born in Wheeling on March 29, 1962. He spent much of his life there before moving to Massachusetts for college. Nutting was only 44 years old when he became owner of the Pittsburgh Pirates. He’s now 57 years old.
10. Pirates projects
Since becoming owner in 2002, Nutting has led a few initiatives for better training facilities for the team. Under his leadership, the franchise built a Pirates training academy at the Dominican Republic. Nutting also helped rebuild Pirate City. The facility is located in Bradenton, Florida. It serves as spring training facility for both the Pirates’ minor and major league teams.
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