3.31.2008
Opening Day
3.29.2008
Frozen Four
3.28.2008
This Week in Comics
I just don't get it sometime. You have a great series event, you are coming off a high and then you lay consecutive eggs. This book doesn't have a place...it needs to go away. This was a filler story with nothing. Come on build on something don't give us junk.
Ultimate Spider-Man #120
The New Avengers #39
3.27.2008
Casanova - Luxuria
3.26.2008
3.25.2008
MLB Opening Day
AL Playoff Teams
Red Sox, Yankees, Tigers, and Angels
NL Playoff Teams
Dodgers, Roxs, Brewers, and Mets
World Series
Soxs and Roxs Part II!
Baseball quote
"A baseball game is nothing but a great slow contraption for getting you to pay attention to the cadence of a summer day"
3.24.2008
Rox Talk
Games | HR | Rate | Temp | Wind Speed | |
April | 13 | 18 | 1.38 | 62 | 10 |
May 70td> | 14 | 26 | 1.86 | 70 | 8 |
June | 12 | 31 | 2.58 | 79 | 8 |
July | 12 | 32 | 2.67 | 87 | 7 |
August | 14 | 38 | 2.71 | 82 | 6 |
September | 17 | 39 | 2.29 | 75 | 7 |
And finally wind direction?
Interesting it seems low wind speed good and wind out of right field.
3.22.2008
3.21.2008
This Week in Comics
Chapter 2 in the further adventures of Marvel's Original Family. Read someones blog who really hates the direction these two first books are going. I found the story to be intriguing although a bit too solo with none of the characters really interacting. The art is good. Anyway next issue brings a big giant robotic Capt A. We shall see...
Captain America #36
Good story but the last two pages drove me nuts. This run as been so good, I just hope Brubaker doesn't try the Clone thing (doesn't anyone learn from Spidey?). Also I hope the whole Skrull thing doesn't detour our series. The Capt A death thing may or may not have been driven by the Civil War storyline. Good stuff
3.20.2008
Modesty Blaise, Dakota North?
3.19.2008
3.18.2008
New Yorker Article - Modern Magic and the Meaning of Life
3.17.2008
Rox Talk
3.14.2008
Thomas Friedman - The World is Flat
- Windows 3.0 shipped on May 22, 1990 only six months after the wall (Berlin) went down
- On any given day, according to UPS, 2% of the world's GDP can be found in UPS delivery trucks
- ...there is no limit to the number of idea-generated jobs in the world...
"So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something" - Steve Jobs
"Out of clutter, find simplicity
From discord, find harmony
In the middle of difficulty, lies opportunity" - Einstein
3.13.2008
Converse - Chuck Taylor's Anniversary
3.12.2008
3.11.2008
Yuengling Traditional Lager
3.10.2008
Rox Talk
AVERAGE | G | PA | AB | R | H+BB | HBP+RE | LOB |
April | 26 | 40 | 34 | 4 | 13 | 1 | 8 |
May | 28 | 38 | 34 | 4 | 12 | 1 | 7 |
June | 27 | 40 | 36 | 6 | 14 | 1 | 8 |
July | 24 | 39 | 34 | 6 | 13 | 1 | 7 |
August | 29 | 41 | 36 | 6 | 14 | 1 | 8 |
Sept | 29 | 41 | 36 | 6 | 14 | 1 | 8 |
I then plotted the running percentage of a few of these factors versus projected wins just to see which number means most to a teams wins. Again the number that wowed me was that Left on Base per Plate Appearance (blue line above) which indicates that on average the Roxs pretty much consistently left 8 runners on throughout the season. Almost no change.
3.07.2008
This Week in Comics Part I
Difficult picking up a comic that hasn't run in a few years and then try to pick it up and read it for any true insight. Another reason to track down the previous 20 issues and get caught up before trying to figure it out now!
Basically a tie-in to the new DVD that Cooke released. Great additional material and overall a good companion piece. Loved what he did with all the DC comics and how he integrated them in to the that 1950 - 60s mindset. Good stuff.
It has been forever since a new Powers hit. In fact in the letter's column someone even mentioned the lateness of the book. You really lose continuity when it is 3 months between issues. The direction of this book has really gone sucky. I mean the book sold because of the dynamic between Deena and Pilgrim and since her departure to the dark side the book has been a real drag. I was hoping that the Deena thing would be a plot line that would move the book forward but have them finally get back together but alas who knows what Bendis is doing. The book has been an utter directionless drag of late. This upcoming skrull thing better be good because is killing his other stuff.
Didn't think I would like this but it rocked. Something the X-world needed although up to this point it never really was appropriate in Xavier's world. Now that Scott is running things he is bringing a ruthlessness not seen in the X-world. Do I agree with it? Not really but it makes for a compelling story. We shall see if this lasts. Poor Scott he is falling to the dark side...can we see a future where Scott and Emma become the bad guys?
Really I am sure this is a filler chapter with a dynamic issue #500 coming? I hate when writer's do this. They put some lame storyline in to bridge issue number extravaganzas. Why did Peter go back to Russia? What was Angel doing in San Fran and why is Scott and Emma rushing there? Xavier just got a bullet to the head and this is what happens? Ughhhhh!
Alright up to this point the Season 8 thing has been going well but this issue is just so un-Buffy like. So Buffy has a lesbian liaison? What the f$&k is that about. Alright I am not interested in an dirty old man's desire to see Buffy getting it on with another slayer. This is totally unlike her character. It is fine to have characters who are gay...I have no problem with Willow but to just throw a character into that situation that is just not right. It really felt like it was forced and just some perversion. Perhaps it will be a plot point later on but I am not buying it. It is not Buffy.
3.06.2008
Iron Man
Can't wait for the movie!
3.05.2008
3.04.2008
Magazine Update
3.03.2008
Rox Talk - Season Predictions
"...based on this little exercise it looks like LA has the early club house lead. They had a bunch of good acquisitions in Andrew Jones and possibly a full season of Schmidt. The unknown factor is the Japanese pitcher Kuroda. San Diego has a lot of offensive holes to fill with losing Cameron, Giles, and Bradley and trying to make this up with Iguchi, Hairston, and Edmonds (who is old!). Haren doesn't solve Arizona's offensive woes (although their young players should start to hit being a year older). What about our Roxs? Well with full seasons from Jimenez and possibly Morales along with a year older Hirsh the pitching should stay fine. The only real hole is 2B. Can Nix get 8 - 12 Win Shares this year (to make up for Matsui's 14)? I think the Roxs will be fine even with the rivals additions."
So what does all this mean? Well a pretty good spread of wins from a low of 77 to high of 93. The average was 84 wins and doing a 95% confidence on the data (take this with a grain of salt since we only have 3 - 5 data points) and based on the projection data the Roxs have a 95% of winning between 82 and 87 games!
Obviously a lot of assumptions are in this calculation. In 2007 the Roxs scored 860 runs and yet none of the normalized projections reach this level for 2008. The big reason for this is the unknown 2B factor. Matsui scored 84 runs last year and Nix is only projected to be in the 50s. In addition with a stabilized line-up with Tulo's pop for an entire season, my hope is the Roxs can score more than 860 runs (the highest total ever is 2000 when the Roxs scored 968 runs!). Unfortunately if the offensive is a bit conservative then the pitching assumptions are probably a bit aggressive. Last year was the best pitching year in franchise history with only 758 runs given up. This was a testament to a good bullpen especially with losing 3/5ths of the pitching staff. If the pitchers can stay healthy then the skies the limit but can we really have as great of a bullpen this year?
So I predict an 85 win season with the Roxs finishing in second to the Dodgers. The D-backs will be neck and neck with the Roxs all year and will finish third with Padres and Giants finishing 4th and 5th in the division.
3.01.2008
This Week in Comics
X-men Legacy #208
Ultimate Spider-Man #119
Batman