Tag / Corona Virus

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Fitbit VII – Week 9

The second week of the March Madness Step Challenge puts me over goal for the second consecutive week, the first time I’ve managed that since early August.  The week got off to a good start on Sunday, as I picked up 7800 steps.  Monday I managed to garner my first 10,000 step day since my August trip to the zoo with Danny, finishing over 10,300 as I ventured out to a not-so-local CVS to get my first dose of the Pfizer vaccine.  Tuesday fell back down to 8100 steps, which I guess is still acceptable.  Wednesday finished with only 6300 steps.  Thursday bounced back, rising up to 7700 steps.  Friday was nearly as good, with over 7500 steps.  Saturday was the down day of the week, with only 4700 steps.

Total steps: 52,716

Daily average: 7530.9

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April Showers

As we kick off Michael’s birthday month, we go back over a year, to the last sporting event I attended in February of 2020 before the corona virus shut down everything a few weeks later.  After the Boilermakers made a late run to hold off Northwestern at Welsh-Ryan arena, Michael and I got our picture taken by the court as we were walking out.  Little did I know that this would be the last live event I would attend.

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March All Time Leaders – Through 2020

With a full year of baseball on tap after last year’s troubles due to a combination of the corona virus and needless labor squabbles, I thought it would be interesting to look at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for each month in games that I have attended.

Thanks to the recent collective bargaining agreement adding more off days during the regular season,  opening day has been moving earlier into March over the past couple of seasons.  Despite that, I have only attended 2 March games coming in to this year, with both of them coming on the 31st, in 2003 and 2014.

Home Runs

Name Total
Alejandro de Aza 2
Corey Patterson 2

Hits

Name Total
Corey Patterson 4
Mark Grudzielanek 3
11 tied with 2

Runs

Name Total
Sammy Sosa 3
Hee Seop Choi 3
5 tied with 2

RBI

Name Total
Corey Patterson 7
Mark Bellhorn 4
Alejandro de Aza 3
Kurt Suzuki 3

Doubles

Name Total
Jeromy Burnitz 2
8 tied with 1

Triples Continue reading →

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2021 Predictions

After a year of pandemic-related shut downs and a truncated 60-game schedule last year, the 2021 baseball season is scheduled to kick off on Thursday with a full slate of games and some percentage of fans back in the stands.  For the eleventh consecutive year, I’ve looked into the crystal ball to make my picks for the upcoming season.

American League

East: Yankees

Central: Twins

West: Astros

Wild Cards: White Sox, Blue Jays

AL Champion: Yankees

Cy Young: Lucas Giolito

MVP: Aaron Judge

National League

Continue reading →

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Active Batting Leaders – Through 2020

baseballs2Last month, we looked at the overall leaders on both sides of the ball from all of the games I’ve attended between 1984 and 2020.  With spring training managing to keep going despite the continuing pandemic due to the corona virus, Opening Day is right around the corner.  Let’s take another look at those numbers, limiting it to players that are still active heading in to the 2021 season.

Home Runs

Name Total
Jose Abreu 36
Tim Anderson 16
Avisail Garcia 15
Gordon Beckham 15
Melky Cabrera 14

Hits

Name Total
Jose Abreu 193
Gordon Beckham 146
Melky Cabrera 132
Tim Anderson 113
Adam Eaton 105

Runs

Name Total
Jose Abreu 89
Gordon Beckham 85
Tim Anderson 62
Avisail Garcia 58
Adam Eaton 52

RBI

Name Total
Jose Abreu 106
Gordon Beckham 71
Melky Cabrera Continue reading →
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Fitbit VII – Week 7

We wrap up a full year of pandemic-induced working from home with a pretty decent week, my best weekly total since I went to Michigan in September.  Spring-like weather helped me get the week off to a good start on Sunday, as I took an afternoon walk to listen to the White Sox game on the radio and finished 10 steps shy of 7700, my first day over goal in over a month.  I managed to better my performance on Monday, racking up over 7900 steps and finishing over goal two days in a row for the first time since early November.  Tuesday was yet another winner, with 7800 steps, giving me 3 straight days over goal for the first time since that September trip to Michigan.  Things fell apart a bit on Wednesday, where meetings kept me chained to my desk all day and left me with only 3200 steps.  Thursday saw a decent bounce back, as I was able to get back up to 5900 steps.  Friday saw another slight decline, coming 17 steps shy of 5300.  Saturday saw a nice improvement, despite the spring-like weather starting to fade, finishing over 6000 steps.

Total steps: 43,992

Daily average: 6284.6

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The Fans Are Back

After a year with no fans in the stands due to the corona virus, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced yesterday that fans can return for 2021 starting on Opening Day with 20% capacity.  That will put 8,122 fans at Guaranteed Rate Field when the White Sox open their home season on April 8th and 8,274 fans at Wrigley Field when the Cubs start their season on April 1.  Fans will still be required to wear masks and there must be at least six feet between groups in the stands.

Both teams plan to limit sales to season ticket holders initially, before moving out to the general public.  In an email to season ticket holders, the Cubs announced that April games will be either refunded or credited, with an option to purchase single game tickets in pods of one through four people spread throughout the ballpark, including reserved seating in the bleachers.  The White Sox have not released specific information yet, though  I imagine my 19 year White Sox Opening Day streak is in jeopardy.

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All Time Batting Leaders – Through 2020

Last week, we took our annual look at the all time leaders in pitching stats for the 949 games I’ve attended (and identified) between 1984 and 2020. With the full White Sox roster reporting to camp yesterday despite the ongoing pandemic and full workouts beginning today, it’s time to move over to the other side of the ball and take a look at the offensive stat leaders for those games, starting with our first category:

Home Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 93
Sammy Sosa 42
Aramis Ramirez 41
Derrek Lee 40
Jermaine Dye 40

Hits

Name Total
Paul Konerko 366
Alexei Ramirez 300
Derrek Lee 255
AJ Pierzynski 239
Aramis Ramirez 234

Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 200
Derrek Lee 140
Alexei Ramirez 134
Aramis Ramirez 120
A.J. Pierzynski 106

RBI

Name Total
Paul Konerko 235
Aramis Ramirez 158
Alexei Ramirez 140
Derrek Lee 134
Jermaine Dye 108

Doubles Continue reading →

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And I Would Walk 15,000,000 More

A little more than 4 years ago, in January of 2017, I crossed the 5,000,000 step mark while using a Fitbit.  Less than 2 years later, on October 21, 2018, I surpassed 10,000,000 steps.  Thanks in part to the ongoing global pandemic, it took me 2+ years to reach 15,000,000, which I did earlier today.

All told, I’ve amassed over 21.5 million steps in a little over 6 1/12 years since I started tracking my steps.  Not bad, but could be better.  Hopefully things get back on track once the pandemic winds down.

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All Time Pitching Leaders – Through 2020

After a shortened season, thanks to the corona virus, that let in no fans and a failed negotiation to push back the start of the 2021 season, White Sox pitchers and catchers hold their first spring workout today with the hopes that things will be different this year.  I guess that means it is time for our annual look at the pitching leaders in the now 949 games I’ve attended, and identified, between 1984 and 2020.  No difference from last year, since I didn’t attend any games last year and only added a 1988 tilt between the White Sox and the then California Angels.  So, without further ado, let’s get things started with our first category, the always popular:

Wins

Name Total
Mark Buehrle 31
Gavin Floyd 24
Carlos Zambrano 21
Chris Sale 21
John Danks 19

Losses

Name Total
Mark Buehrle 17
Jose Quintana 17
John Danks 16
Carlos Zambrano 15
Gavin Floyd 15

ERA (>= 35 IP)

Name Total
David Robertson 2.17
DJ Carrasco 2.20
Nate Jones Continue reading →