so they're not the worldwide leader in proofreading

you'd be surprised how long this took

(you've got to click to see it at 100%)

4th place is so close I can taste it

the first post i've ever written about bonds & 755

I have mentioned Bonds before but not about the home run record.

So, now that he's sitting on 754, it looks like we need some sort of miracle to prevent him from breaking this record. Can Selig plant some evidence and get him suspended/arrested immediately?

But here's what I was really thinking. What if something happened to him (it wouldn't have to be a fatal sniper or anything, it could be a Nancy Kerrigan type hit on his legs). Then it would be like a real life Mr. 3000, where he has to rehab from broken legs to try and hit 2 more home runs.

.

.

.

The elephant in the room, is that if a sniper did take matters in to his own hands and make sure that Bonds didn't break the record, how would people react? Happy? Secretly happy?

(Note to the FBI: I never, ever would condone any violence and have no plans to do anything of the sort.)

deadspin comment of the year

fincher/palahniuk/zodiac

So I watched Zodiac last night, and after 2 hours and 40 minutes...I wasn't sure what to think. It was well done, but it wasn't that interesting. (possible spoiler alert) The plot simply didn't have that much there, I kept waiting for some sort of revelation, and it never really came. It was based on real life events, and that's part of the problem with real life sometimes, it's not that captivating. The movie covers a police investigation over 10 years, and I bet the policemen felt like not much was happening then too.

The reason I rented it was because of David Fincher. Ignoring his first feature film (Alien 3) his filmography looks like:

• The Game
• se7en
• Fight Club
• Panic Room
• Zodiac

The first three share many characteristics, and Panic Room showed off many cool techniques, as well. Zodiac was his first film that felt slow--the first that didn't captivate me.

Also, by watching more of his films and reading more of Palahniuk's books, I can definitively say that the magic behind Fight Club was more due to Palahniuk than Fincher. Which makes me excited for the future adaptations of more of his novels into films.

And I will say that it irks me that in the Zodiac poster it claims "from the director of se7en and Panic Room."

blockbuster online rocks my socks off

As of Monday I only had 2 out, on my 3 out at a time plan. Purposefully, so that they would ship the only movie in my queue, David Fincher's Zodiac, on Tuesday when it was released.

And Tuesday morning I received an email saying that they had in fact, shipped Zodiac. Haazah. Everything worked out fine.

But that's not the neat part. The neat part is that Zodiac was there, in my mailbox, Tuesday afternoon, the same day it came out on DVD. Now that's fast shipping.

premiere of foodasfuel: season two / season one out on dvd

The critically acclaimed first season of foodasfuel™ enjoyed a good run from it's premiere at the beginning of 2007 to it's season finale on May 25, 2007.



I'm happy to report that it's been picked up for a second season. In the last two months, I've been doing some pushups and occasional running but allowed my eating habits to go off the deep end a little.

But now I'm back from vacation, back and better than ever. I feel motivated to get my body to a point that it's never been, and I'm optimistic based on my previous success.

The good news is that I'm starting season two at a lot better place that I started season one. I'm already in arguably the best shape of my life, and recently accomplished things that I never thought I would do.

I'm not that concerned about the numbers changing on the scale, my goals are:

• to carve a leaner, stronger body
• continue eating healthy to feel good
• set new records in pushups and 5k times
  

Real Football

THE LIONS ARE UNDEFEATED!


North American Update:

we've all got issues

how time flies

has it been one year already? that's pretty crazy.


in case you can't tell, that's the top layer of our wedding cake, that we froze, thawed, and ate on our anniversary, per the tradition.

the worst airport in america

is far and away...Miami International. We thought this on our first time through, when nothing bad actually happened. It was just terribly inconvenient, and takes 30 minutes to walk between gates.

So by the time that we ended up missing our return flight, partly due to bad weather and partly due to the hour we spent in the the Customs line, we were not happy with MIA. At least their code is accurate, because their customer service was Missing In Action. There were no signs or anyone who knew their ass from their elbows and no one could help us out.

We eventually flew out of MIA on Sunday, our anniversary, despite purposefully planning to arrive on Saturday so we wouldn't have to travel on our anniversary.

When we arrived at Chicago, O'hare rocked our socks off by having our bags that had arrived the night before. Sweet home Chicago.


Oh and I'm not the only person to feel this way:

http://www.43places.com/visit/Miami-International-Airport-Miami-Florida/479395

http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/03/23/features/tyler24.php

a week of caymania

Click here to see the pictures...it was a good trip overall, with a wild ending. It's good to be back though.

review of hoagie middle east

So to recap, we had an intro post, a youtube clip, a baseball post with a follow-up, and a picture of a lan party. That's a solid C+.

But then I actually watched the youtube clip and realized that Hoagie Middle East made the youtube clip himself. Blew me away. Final grade: A-.

IBL Update

I just read the rules for the Home Run Derby in the Israel Baseball League. To repeat, if the game is tied after 7 innings (a full game), they go to a HRD to determine the winner. Here's how it goes:

3 batters per team
alternating teams (i.e. first visiting hitter, then first home hitter)
each batter gets 6 SWINGS (maximum 6 home runs)
anybody can hit unless suspended or ejected (not including coaches)
anybody can pitch unless suspended or ejected (this includes coaches)

If still tied after all three hitters from each team, they go for another round of three. The teams can trade out hitters at this point, if desired. However, if one team is winning after a pair of hitters, then they call it a game.

Any questions?

Is That. . .

. . .Bryan Itzkowitz? I thought I saw Bryan at the gym today, but then knew it wasn't and couldn't be him. How did I know? He was at a LAN party at Niraj's.



You see, there's Niraj to the bottom-left and Bryan at the top-right.

(sidenote: There really was a guy that looked like, but wasn't Bryan today at the gym. Then I hoped I still had this picture.)

IBL

That stands for Israel Baseball League. Yes, there is professional baseball in Israel. For a country that cares about football (soccer) first and second, and then basketball third, The opening of a professional league in Israel was great news to this American's ears. Granted, the level of play is comparable to lower level "A" minor league ball in America, but baseball is baseball.

Here is a picture of the seats I took when I arrived at the end of the first inning.

As you can see, I could have moved up.

Special things about the IBL: Seven inning games. With the smaller rosters, it's good because a starting pitcher can go the full seven if pitching well. It doesn't wear on the pitching staff, which is good because they play six games every week.

If the game is tied after 7, there are no extra innings. Home run derby. I have yet to see one, so I don't know exactly how it works. I think three players from each team compete and a coach pitches to his own team.

Oh, some of the managers are famous. Art Shamsky and Ken Holtzman. Look 'em up.

Last, they have some funny promotions. Here's a picture of me doing some Israeli folk dancing during the 5th inning stretch with Dr. Ruth.


She's the short, old woman. In this game, there were two collisions at home plate. After the second one, the catcher got up screaming at the guy who ran him over and dropped an F-bomb loud enough for everyone to hear. Dr. Ruth takes the mic and says that it's a gentleman's game and if they play like gentlemen, she promises that they will have good sex for the rest of their lives. She then repeats this in Hebrew and French. Who knew that Dr. Ruth spoke at least three languages?

The next game I went to I saw this huge guy who looked kind of familiar. They announced his name as Julio Guerrero. Then it hit me. This guy looks just like Vlad Guerrero, but fatter and slower. Sure enough, it's his brother. I once said that Vlad guerrero looks like a gorilla (in a good way) because of his crazy hair and approach to baseball. Now I can watch his brother. He hits the same way. He swings at everything and hits it all hard.



Sadly, things aren't all roses. At the ballpark in Tel Aviv, they do not have hot dogs. However, they have sushi. I love sushi, but not at a ballgame. Get it out of here and give me a kosher hot dog.

I think this is long enough.

Hoagie, Middle East Style

In keeping with a theme on Hoagie Central, and coming from Hoagie Middle East, I have posted a clip on Youtube of the kind of sandwich that Hoagie Middle East typically makes over here. Enjoy the clip.

NEW NAME!

Well readers, Mr. and Mrs. Hoagie Central are on vacation. You know what that means, right?

Hoagie Central is taking a break, so you get Hoagie Middle East. Because of the time difference and my work schedule, the posts will probably be earlier in the day, rather than later and will have a definite Israeli slant.

I hope you will enjoy.

-Hoagie Middle East

FYI: I took this picture

home movies

my long national nightmare is over / no posts for a week

Tonight I'm picking up my wife from the airport and Sunday we're off to Grand Cayman to celebrate our one year anniversary. Here's a stock photo of the resort we're going to. Hopefully, I'll have a bunch of photos of my own to share.

Update: There might be a surprise guest blogger while I'm out of the country. Hopefully he doesn't break the site.

bonus around the horn comment

Jay Marrioti said "There is no chance" that Mark Cuban gets approved to be the Cubs' owner. He says that Selig already has a man lined up, something like John Canning or something.

I'll be curious to see how this plays out.

bonus funny pic

Softball 2007: Game Seven

I pitched the first half, and was the leadoff hitter. My active innings are in black.


Batting Stats for Game Seven:
1st AB: ground out
2nd AB: ground out

Average: 0.000
Slugging: 0.000


Pitching Stats for Game Seven:
4 IP
4 runs
1 K
0 BB

ERA: 7.00 and the loss

Batting Stats on the Season:
13/25: 10 singles, 3 doubles, 8 runs scored, 4 walks, 4 rbi, 1 strike out.
Average: .520
Slugging: .640
OBP: .586

Pitching Stats on the Season:
51 innings pitched
62 runs
10 K
2 BB

ERA: 8.51
Record: 5-4

I played fine in the field, but no one on our team could get any hits going. We had a few errors in the field, and the other team didn't have any--this is par for the course. It looks as though we'll get 5th place (out of 8) and tonight's opponent will likely finish in 4th. Meaning we'll play them in the first round of the playoffs, and meaning the outcome of this game was meaningless. We'll see.
Team Record 3-4

how do you bunt for a double?

http://youtube.com/watch?v=MYKPWEOZT1Q

funny description too

Buzzmaster: Lets get started...


Kirat (Skokie, IL): What the heck is a buzzmaster?

Dave: I'm not sure. But I'm glad I have one.


Kevin (St. Louis, MO): Why didn't La Russa put Pujols in to try and win the All-Star Game?

Dave: I think he might have been preoccupied with some Busch Light in the dugout. But what I find interesting is, this is one example where a major sport instituted a radical change (tying HFA to an exhibition) and it didn't work out that well. Something to remember every time some blogger has the answer to "fixing" a problem in sports.


RJ (Nashville, TN): Are you excited about the ESPY's?

Dave: I understand that ESPN can't hide the winner of the World Series of Poker for 5 months, but can't they hide the winners of the ESPY's until Sunday? I just read the article on their front page saying who won, so no, I'm not tuning in.


Mark (Tel Aviv, Israel): I'm dying for some fantasy football sleepers. Can you answer my question before I go to bed?

Dave: I think there's a guy on the Chargers that should be good this year. LaDarian or something. Also, I think this is the year you should take a WR in the first round. Dwayne Bowe is the #1 pick on my big board.


Luther (Houston, TX): Sorry I missed that 3-pointer in the championship game.

Dave: It's okay. I forgive you.


Jerome (Seattle, WA): If I bought a football team, would you be my GM?

Dave: This might come as a shock, but just because I blog about the NFL sometimes, I'm not convinced that I have what it takes to make personnel decisions at the highest level of the game.


Jim (Austin, TX): You keep talking about "getting abs". What are you going to do if/when you actually get them?

Dave: Photograph myself and adjust the hue in Photoshop so I look like a greek statue.


Girls from Richwoods High School, Class of 2001: We've made a huge mistake.

Dave: Sorry ladies, I'm taken.


Matt (Naperville, IL): I pooped in my refrigerator.

Dave: So that's what you've been up to!


Tony (Portland, OR): I used to enjoy your blog but now I think you're a hack. Defend yourself.

Dave: You make a valid argument.


Niraj (Chicago, IL): How come you very quickly changed the name of your blog early on, but have stuck with Hoagie Central? Especially after you got all that traffic to Free Meat for the video games post?

Dave: If I had remembered Hoagie Central when I started this, I wouldn't have needed to change it. It started as SportsCorner, but I soon realized there were thousands of sports blogs so I needed a real name. Eventually I found my brand.


Haaaaretz (Middle East): Why isn't the hoagie in HD like the rest of the page?

Dave: If you're not getting all of Hoagie Central in HD, make sure you have all of your plug-ins installed. Espcially on a mac, I recommend using Mozilla Firefox, as it is the best web browser.


Herman (Kansas City, MO): I forgot why you play the game.

Dave: YOU PLAY TO WIN THE GAME! And to make the playoffs.


Jim (State of Outrage): What's that? Oh come on now. Playoffs? Don't talk about-- playoffs? You kidding me? Playoffs?

Dave: Sorry.


Brit (Poughkeepsie, NY): Shouldn't you be working? I miss you.

Dave: This is hard work! I miss you too.


Brian (Chelsea, UK): Why don't you post more about the beautiful game?

Dave: I assume you're referring to football. It doesn't start again until September. But at least you can enjoy watching one of our finest athletes, Trent Green, in person this year. Hopefully he walks off the field on his own power.


Trent (Miami, FL): That hurts. Almost as much as that concussion.

Dave: I'm sorry. Look on the bright side. At least you got that Super Bowl ring with the Rams.


Melissa VanVickle (St. Louis, MO): My cubicle smells funny.

Dave: First, who the hell is Melissa VanVickle? Second, I hope it's just tuna.


Ralph (Toronto, Ontario): What athlete would you most like to watch a game with?

Dave: That's a great question. Hmm....I don't have a great answer. Maybe Steve Nash, because he seems like a genuinely nice guy that I might be able to relax around. I don't know, Tiger? I guess it would be fun to root against the Broncos with LJ or Gonzo...


Pearman (Dead Sea): When will this chat end?

Dave: Maybe soon, I'm running out of questions. It's a lot harder when you have to write the questions too.


Miramax (Hollywood, CA): I need a hit film...what do you got?

Dave: The Arrested Development Movie.


Will Leitch (New York, NY): Will you come back to my site?

Dave: As soon as I find a magnifying glass.


Some Jew (Jewland): Why do sports commentators/journalists/analysts get called out for "flip-flopping"? Shouldn't we be happy when they gather some more information and then make a more educated answer?

Dave: I think that George W. Bush proved in 2004 that it's more important to make a firm stand on something, then to waffle about whether something is right or wrong.


Rick (Winnipeg, Canada): My name is Dan and I'm in Illinois now!

Dave: You'll always be Rick from Canada to me.


Bill (Los Angeles, CA): Are you stealing my bit?

Dave: No. This would be stealing your bit: Me and my buddies Hench and J-Bug took a road trip to Vegas. There we were obnoxious, pretended to be good at blackjack, called my dad who was watching the NBA lottery on YouTube. Kevin Durant, Celtics, Celtics, Celtics, Kevin Durant, Sopranos, Tom Brady, obnoxious, Rashard Lewis, Durant, Celtics.


Anonymous: I've heard a rumor that something called "Project Mercury" has been shooting in the Chicago area, and then recently saw rumor on Ain't It Cool that this may actually be a fake working title for a Van Quattro sequel. Is this true, and can you confirm if you are involved?

Dave: All I know is what I read on the official VQ2 website. Although I did hear that the weather combined with personal schedules may have delayed production for a couple weeks.


Deron (Salt Lake City, UT): Who has the smoothest hands in the NBA?

Dave: I'll never tell.


Rishi (Chicago, IL): Want to come over for date night tonight? Burnsy and are splitting a bottle of a 2004 Riesling and watching Fried Green Tomatoes.

Dave: Uh...I've got a softball game tonight, thanks.


Buzzmaster: And that's it for today.

Dave: Thanks for all your questions, we had over 41,000 today. Leave any additional questions in the comments and maybe I'll do a maibag in a couple weeks.

hoagie central chat coming tomorrow

Send in your questions in the comments now! Chat begins at 1:00 ET tomorrow.

the west wing

I plowed through the first season of the West Wing (22 hour long episodes) in 6 days. Would have been a little faster if I didn't have to wait a day for disc three to arrive. It's great, compelling tv--honestly, I can't say enough good things about it.

Once I finish TWW, I'm going to go back and rewatch Sports Night in order, this fresh off of lamenting about the cancellation of Studio 60.

What is interesting is that there are some strange things, simply because this season was filmed in 1999:

• They have cell phones, but they also use these things called "pagers"
• While they do have continuing issues, for the most part, especially compared to S60, the story lines are often contained in one episode. The popularity of long story arcs is relatively recent but it's a little odd to see that near the end of an episode the President is praying for the safe return of a solider, and to not have that storyline continue in the next episode. But it still works.
• The White House staff has a low approval rating despite working diligently and with the best interest of the people. That doesn't quite sync up with the reason the current administration has a low approval rating.
• How the world has changed...the President said in response to a solider downed in Iraq, "If we don't get him back safely, I'm invading Baghdad" -- it might have been a powerful threat in 1999, but in 2007 it hits a little to close to home as a poor reason to start a war.

7.10.07

It's been a little while since I've checked in...in fact, I haven't really written about it since the big reveal of the 40 pounds.

So 6 and 1/2 weeks later, after getting down to a weight of 154, my current weight is...155. I've held constant around 155 or 156 and it feels good.

I don't really want to have a lower scale number (I'm fine with 155 forever) but it would be nice if I could lose a little flab around my stomach--knowing that to do so would mean losing pounds on the scale, but that's beside the point.

My abs are the strongest they've ever been, mostly through a combination of push-ups and running. Although I can only barely make them out--hence the desire to lose that flab that's covering them up. So I'm not ready to take my shirt off for the cover of Men's Health, but it's kind of weird to flex my abs and feel rock hard muscles, even if there is a little fat in the way.

But I'm definitely glad that I haven't gained any of the weight back. And perhaps a little surprised, considering I've had a number of occasions where I've splurged on my caloric intake--but overall I'm still doing a lot of things right with my protein bars, apples, whole wheat bread and ham sandwiches, chicken fajita dinners, I've been making some sweet corn too.

If I can keep up the pushups/running routine, and still eat well, I should be in even better shape by the fall/winter.

mlb all-star break

First off, I agree with some of the recommendations I've seen for improving the Home Run Derby: 5 outs per batter. In the finals, alternate 3 innings of 3 outs for each batter going back and forth.

To really make it a worthwhile day day before, they should add a skills competition. Possible events:

• Outfield throws to home plate target
• Fastest to run the bases
• Line drive accuracy contest

They could intermix the rounds, to keep the variety going. It could be very exciting.

Update: How about a fastest pitch contest? Or a pitching at target contest like this:



Or how about a fielding contest where they shoot a bunch of fly balls and they have to run back and forth and make catches over the wall? Maybe an infield grounder contest, I dunno...

there's still hope for the royals

Before we say that the Royals have nothing to play for, let's look at their 3-year history, and then their current standings.

2004 AS Break
4th place: Tigers/Indians 5.5 GB
5th place: Royals 15.5 GB

End of 2004
4th place: Tigers 20 GB
5th place: Royals 34 GB

2005 AS Break
4th place: Tigers 15 GB
5th place: Royals 27.5 GB

End of 2005
4th place: Tigers 28 GB
5th place: Royals 43 GB

2006 AS Break
4th place: Indians 18.5 GB
5th place: Royals 27.5 GB

End of 2006
4th place: Indians 18 GB
5th place: Royals 34 GB


It's been pretty bad...what about this year?

2007 AS Break
4th place: White Sox 13 GB
5th place: Royals 15 GB

That's right! They're only 2 games out of fourth place at the All-Star Break. Just 2 games away from not last! Come on Kansas City. Let's win one for the gipper get out of the cellar!

turducken

how to spend 9 hours at a movie theater

alternative titles for this post:
this is your brain on movies
why i need my wife around
the biggest movie hop in history

I was prepared. I had my schedule. I started early in the day. And I even had a costume change. I was ready.

12:50 -- Live Free or Die Hard
3:15 -- Transformers
5:40 -- Evan Almighty
7:45 -- 1408

I entered the complex at 12:40 in the afternoon, on a sunny, warm Saturday, and left at 9:40 at night.

In that 9 hours, I saw 4 movies with a total running time of 7 hours and 37 minutes. But there was less down time then you might think. Only before the last movie, when I was 20 minutes early, was I waiting for the previews to start. The timing was perfect. I only used the bathroom once and didn't eat anything. T

On the way home, all the movies were blending together, and my brain felt like mush. But what about the movies themselves?

Die Hard - 10/10
(Rotten Tomatoes: 78%)

This was awesome and well worth the price of admission. The action was incredible, featuring stuff I've never seen before. Bruce was awesome as ever and Justin Long was great too. Exceeded all my expectations.

Transformers - 2/10
(Rotten Tomatoes: 56%)

This movie made zero sense. It had hints of enjoyability, but never delivered. At any point I was willing to walk out, but thought I should give it the benefit of the doubt to finish and salvage something...it wasn't necessary.

Evan Almighty - 8/10
(Rotten Tomatoes: 24%)

How could a movie starring Steve Carell not be funny? Moreover, how could a movie starring Steve Carell not be funny and still be enjoyable?

First off, it's rated PG, and that way for a reason. This is not a frat pack comedy, this is a kids/family movie. This is a feel good movie about faith, God, and doing the right thing. It's not worth 8 bucks, but I left the theater with a smile on my face.

1408 - 9/10
(Rotten Tomatoes: 77%)

I was expecting a thriller, and thought it was an exceptionally scary thriller.
But perhaps it should be classified as a horror movie, and considered an exceptionally well done horror film.

Based on a Stephen King story, it builds tension continuously without any lulls, and the biggest scares were not from a loud noise or a ghost jumping (although there were plenty of those) but from the gradual realizations of what is going on. Very well done.

-----

I paid 8 bucks and got my money's worth.

Fair value of each movie:
Die Hard - 10 bucks
Transformers - 2 bucks
Evan Almighty - 4 bucks
1408 - 6 bucks

----

Here are the reviews for the other summer movies I've seen:

SiCKO - 9/10
(Rotten Tomatoes: 91%)

A must see movie. Doesn't get a 10 from me because of how he glossed over any negatives ignoring that there might be anything wrong with UHC in practice.

Ocean's Thirteen - 9/10
(Rotten Tomatoes: 70%)

I give the first one a 10, the sequel a 5, and this one a 9. Not as perfect as the first one, but nothing wrong with this one.

Knocked Up - 9/10
(Rotten Tomatoes: 92%)

Not as funny as 40YOV, but great nonetheless. Part of a new era of comedies that are just hilarious.

----

I noticed that I was giving a lot of 9's, but the sample was not random. If I was seeing every movie at the theater, I'm sure I would have covered each grade.

mark and niraj's excellent gaycation

wooooo....drunk photoshop.

fun times

you know what's fun? getting drunk alone and watching college chronicles. earlier today i was listening to sum 41--stupid pop music that took me back to the summer before college--great memories.

anyways, even in my most incoherent state, i realize, that i am so ridiculously lucky to be married to an amazing woman, and i don't publicly broadcast that fact enough.


these fries are awesome. how many drunk people are grating parmesean reggiano--the good stuff too, from italy. not that regiannito bullshit.

partyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

I'm celebrating the 6th of July by drinking faux-margaritas alone and watching episodes 9-12 of the West Wing, season one. That's right, i used the word faux. Fuck you.

I've got some garlic-parmesean fries in the oven because when I do drunk eating, I do classy drunk eating.

This is an actual picture taken from my apartment:

woooooooooooooooooooooooo

Ever since the USA beat Brazil, downtown Chicago has been partying like crazy. I'm drunk as shit.

much Adu about something

I'm watching Brazil-USA in the Under-20 World Cup, where the winner advances from their group, and it's a real cracker of a match...to quote the annoucner "We've got drama by the buckets"!

Update: 81' USA USA Freddy Adu with the wonderassist!

Update: 89' The announcer is really getting out of hand with the hyperbole. Speaking to the drama "At this rate, futbol will become more popular in Canada than ice hockey" (The game is being played in Ottawa.

After a Brazil forward missed a header opportunity he ran full speed into the net "He launched himself like Apollo 12" - a fair description.

And that's full time. USA wins 2-1, most likely eliminating Brazil, one of the tournament favorites.

flickr? flicku, buddy.

(click to see this flickr set)

lake shore drive mashup contest

which do you prefer?

mom's new place

Verdict: Awesome place, awesome 40" Samsung HD-LCD. My mom has a better tv than me.

so, go check your website

(screenshot of supercuts having a little miscommunication about what is supposed to be the headline, and what is supposed to be the body copy.)

celebrating the fourth of july

I rang in Independence Day by watching 5 episodes of the West Wing. You may take away my Studio 60, but you'll never take my FREEDOM!

madtv is still on the air?

if you win it, will they come?

(click to view)

How to read the chart:
The line is the MLB average for home attendance, based on the team's record. To see how a team stacks up, measure the vertical distance from each dot to the line. For example, the Rangers are two gridlines above the average line, meaning they are drawing 4% better than you would expect from their record.

Findings:

• The Dodgers, Padres, Mets, Brewers, Reds and Rangers are all getting about what you would expect, despite having vastly different records.
• The Indians are winning almost as much as anybody, but barely getting more fans than the Nationals or Royals.
• The Giants, even more so than the Cubs it appears, don't need to win to draw a crowd.
• And the Devil Rays stink, but so the Reds and they're still getting over 50% attendance.

Conclusions:
There are a lot of teams far above and below the league average, with few teams close to the line. If there was no correlation between winning and attendance, the average line would be flat. But it seems that winning is not the most important factor.

yo yo

Hit the play button to hear me talk...

Create your Gizmoz and audition to star in a Taco Bell TV commercial!

This was from 7/23, but I moved it to 7/03 to get it off the front page and stop that annoying sound.

the transcript of every single person playing with the iphone at the apple store

>hello
>hey, guess where i'm calling you from?
>where
>i'm calling on an iPhone!
>okay
>aren't you impressed? an iPhone! this thing is so cool!
>what else have you done?
>i found the apple store on google maps