Under the headline ”    She was the grand lady of the Pirates,” the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette published on October 30 a tribute to O’Leary.

“Sally was the grand lady of the Buccos,” broadcaster Greg Brown said. “She bled black and gold, even through her green Irish blood.”

Broadcaster Bob Prince called O’Leary “My Gal Sal” and Steelers owner Art Rooney Sr. once referred to as “the lady who runs the Pirates.”

Ms. O’Leary, a native of Sheffield, Pa., was the Pirates’ assistant media relations director from 1964 until her retirement in 1996. She remained a fixture in the front office as a liaison for alumni affairs, coordinating the publication of the organization’s alumni magazine. She had two World Series rings, from 1971 and 1979, and kept a key to Forbes Field and Three Rivers Stadium.

Steve Blass, the former Pirates pitcher and current broadcaster, remembered he and Ms. O’Leary “were rookies together in 1964.” Both debuted that May, Blass on the mound and O’Leary as Mr. Prince’s broadcast aid and personal secretary. To Mr. Prince, she was irreplaceable.

“She was 100 percent devoted to her job,” Jim Trdinich, Pirates director of communications, said. “One of the first women in baseball.”

“Miss Fix-It,” Brown added. “Any time you needed something done, she would get it done.”

“When you went to that ballpark, you wanted to say hello to Sally,” said Steve Blass, who with his wife Karen often helped shuttle Ms. O’Leary around once she could no longer drive. “She had a twinkle in her eye. She was a great Pirate lady. She was a great Irish lady. She was Sally O’Leary.”

“Sally was one of those bright lights,” Blass said. “It never dimmed from 1964 on.”