ewickley’s Claudio Reilsono has
always had one dream—to work
in professional baseball. As life
has unfolded, Reilsono has held
on to that dream, taking him on
adventures great and small.
Reilsono, 53, grew up in
Sewickley and graduated from Quaker
Valley High School in 1982. He and his
wife, Lynda, have one daughter, Ida, who is
a senior at QVHS this year.
“I have lived in Sewickley all my life—as
a matter of fact, I have lived in the same
house!” says Reilsono. “There’s not a
place in the world I would rather live than
Sewickley. It’s a beautiful town, close to
everything—the city, the woods, churches,
the airport, malls, restaurants, schools,
hospitals, library—and a wonderful place to
raise a family.”
Reilsono’s father, Olindo, came to
Sewickley from Falerna, Italy, in 1935 and
his mother, Ida, from Nocera, Italy, in 1963.
“I can’t take one step in this town without
great memories of my parents, friends, my
wife and daughter—I will never leave.”
Reilsono went to his first Pittsburgh
Pirates game on August 19, 1973—at the
age of 8. The experience was life changing.
From touring the locker rooms to meeting
some of the players, Reilsono loved
everything about the atmosphere.
“I remember going home and my dad
asking me if I had a good time,” recalls
Reilsono. “I told him that after that game
I knew exactly what I wanted to do with
the rest of my life—work in professional
baseball.”
Knowing it would be a struggle, his
parents gave everything they could toward
supporting their son’s dreams. Following
high school, Reilsono suffered a shoulder
and a knee injury. Since playing was no
longer an option for a period of time, he
decided to go into coaching, and became an
assistant coach for Quaker Valley under his
former coach and friend, Rich Woznicki.
In 1988, at the age of 23, he became the
head baseball coach at QV—the youngest
coach in the WPIAL. In 1989 he continued
on to Penn State Beaver Campus to become
an assistant coach there, and just a year later
was named head coach—taking the team to
a championship victory on October 8, 1990.
Reilsono coached for a brief time at the
Community College of Beaver County
and Duquesne University. After leaving
Duquesne, he took a hiatus from coaching for
two years, then got a job at Quigley Catholic
High School. “I loved coaching at Quigley,
but I was far from my dream of pro baseball,”
says Reilsono. “I had contacted just about
every pro organization around, only to be
told no. It was heartbreaking to say the least,
but I pressed on.”
In November of 1999, he found out about
a pro baseball scouting company called the
Global Scouting Bureau (GSB). “Long story
short, I contacted the owner, James Gamble,
multiple times every month,” he laughs.
In January of 2001, Gamble hired Reilsono
to be a professional baseball scout, and in
2002 Reilsono was named General Manager
of the GSB—and holds both positions to this
day. “James Gamble gave me the opportunity
of a lifetime and I will never ever forget that
he is the guy who helped make our—mine
and my parents’—dreams come true,” he
adds.
In 2005, Reilsono was named head
coach at Carnegie Mellon University. “It is
an absolute dream to coach there,” he says.
“We’ve won two Conference titles and it’s
one of the best colleges in the world, but
what makes it so great is I get to coach a
fantastic group of people—so I get the best in
all worlds in baseball. My dreams have come
true and then some.”
Ambitious as ever, Reilsono also enjoys
working in other fields as the co-host of
“Steel City Sports World” and the host of
“Pittsburgh’s Ring Talk”—Pittsburgh’s only
TV boxing show. Additionally, he announces
boxing matches, owns a landscaping business,
is a motivational speaker and is working on
developing a Celebrity Placement business
and an eight-part documentary series—all
under the umbrella of Claudio Reilsono
Enterprises.
His newest venture is a podcast. “I’ve had
the good fortune of meeting and becoming
friends with many of the athletes I grew up
watching,” explains Reilsono. “As part of the
podcast, I interview many former Pirates
and Steelers players of the ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s,
while mixing in some of today’s best-known
coaches. These guys have great stories, plus
they still have many fans.”
Reilsono’s podcast—“The Claudio
Reilsono Sports Show”—not only talks
about people’s careers, but how they got
there, obstacles they overcame and what
they’re doing now. Mixed in are some
personal stories that Reilsono recounts. In
addition to the local stars, he also interviews
Super Bowl winning coaches, Hall of Fame
boxers and legendary players from other
teams with huge followings.
The show is home based and produced on
the Neil Haley Network and can be heard all
over the world—picked up on radio stations
in Boston, Chicago and London.
Former Pirates Jim Rooker and Sid
Bream were Reilsono’s first two guests
during pilot episodes. “I’m so very excited
about this opportunity,” he says. “So many
of these people have had a major impact in
my life and it’s a thrill to interview them.
“I am very lucky in so many ways.
There’s an old Italian saying that fits me
perfectly—‘If you ever see a turtle on top
of a fence post, you know he didn’t get
there alone.’ I am living my dream thanks
to my incredible parents. Without them
I wouldn’t be where I am today, with
amazing opportunities and a beautiful
family of my own. I hope to give my
daughter every opportunity in the world to
follow and achieve her dreams, just like my
mom and dad did for me.” ■
R eilsono’s Career Accolades
Inducted into Three Halls of Fame:
1. Carnegie Mellon University Baseball Hall of Fame - 2011
2. Pittsburgh’s Steel City Sports Hall of Fame - 2016
3. Pittsburgh’s Sportsline Hall of Fame - July 2018
Awards:
1. Willie Stargell MVP Lifetime Achievement Award - 2011
2. National Italian-American Sports Hall of Fame
Coach of the Year (Pittsburgh Chapter) - 2016
Reilsono’s story has been included in three books including
“Be Invincible” by Vince Papale, former Philadelphia Eagle.
SEWICKLEY
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FALL 2018
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