Sally O’Leary is gone. So is an age of baseball that will never return.

A Cranberry Township resident, O’Leary served as a public relations assistant with the Pittsburgh Pirates for 32 years before retiring in 1996.

She died recently of cancer at age 82.

While with the Pirates, O’Leary was like the team mom. She knew all of the players personally and knew their families.

She knew media members — even ones like myself who covered the team only a few times a year — on a first-name basis. Part of her duties with the Pirates were working with the media and distributing game credentials or complimentary tickets.

Call Sally’s office requesting tickets and she’d address you by your first name, ask how you’re doing, how many tickets you need.

Before you knew it, you were in a conversation with someone who was interested in what you had to say and your well-being.

That’s the kind of person she was.

Once you met Sally O’Leary, you had a new friend.

I paid a visit to her home 13 years ago to do a profile piece on her. Sally had snacks ready and still had that broad smile she used to greet anybody she ever came across.

Her home office had Pirate pictures, bats, autographed baseballs, all sorts of memorabilia.

Having never married, the Pirates were her family and she was proud to represent them.

“The closeness was incredible,” O’Leary recalled of the 1960s and 70s with the Pirates. “It will never be like that again. Somewhere in the 1980s, baseball became a business.”

O’Leary served as personal secretary to Bob Prince, helped operate the scoreboard, kept track of other scores, did statistics, prepared press notes — whatever the team needed.

Through the early 1970’s, women were not permitted in the pressbox or press lounge at Three Rivers Stadium.

“They put a plaque up honoring me on the Media Wall of Fame in the press lounge,” O’Leary said. “That was ironic, since I was never allowed in that lounge.”

O’Leary received the Pride of the Pirates Award in 1998 and more than 400 people attended her retirement party.

Even in retirement, she continued to work for the Pirates from her home, staying closely connected to the Alumni Association and heading up a 30-page Pirate alumni newsletter twice a year.

She kept tabs on every living former Pirate — more than 600 of them — whether he played 15 years or 15 games with the organization.

At some point, baseball really did become a business. And a lot of people within baseball the game — like Sally O’Leary — went away.

She’s probably reuniting with more Pirate alumni where she is now.

Rest in peace, Sally.

You came from a glorious time in sports.

You were one of the people who made it that way.

John Enrietto is sports editor of the Butler Eagle