Oct 19, 2016We went through years of seeing every hack in America reduce dramatic Red Sox playoff baseball to prefabricated invocations of the Curse of the Bambino, and hindsight has only proven how silly and counterproductive it was for writers to hug their clichés rather than write meaningful and interesting things about meaningful and interesting baseball games.
↩︎ Deadspin
Going into game three: Why playoffs are tricky
Despite their regular-season advantage, the Cubs find themselves tied with the Dodgers, and even behind in championship odds, 31 to 35 percent.
The Cubs deserve to be proud of their regular season dominance, but for a number of reasons baseball playoffs don't do very well at identifying the best teams. So even if the Cubs are the best, they are still more likely to lose than to win.
Oct 17, 2016The truth is that we ran the flag up the pole too soon. No doubt about it.
↩︎ Chicago Tribune
Can rituals break the Billy Goat curse?
Fans invoke plenty of folk superstitions when cheering for the Cubs, but the team has gone further. In 2008, they invited a Greek Orthodox priest to bless—or perhaps exorcize—the dugout, though when the team lost in a sweep team management quickly disavowed the invite. Their catcher even took communion in Wrigley this year.
The Editors' Longreads Picks
- An excellent essay on poverty and writing by Starr Davis. Updated May 31, 2022
- Novelist Héctor Tobar tries to understand the 1992 Los Angeles riots through the experiences of a single high school.
- Steven Johnson with a long assessment of the current state of A.I. and language. (The illusion has gotten very good.)
Welcome to The Morning News Tournament of Books, 2017 edition.
- Our championship match is decided in the Tournament of Books, with news of a Rooster surprise debuting this summer. Updated Mar 31, 2017
- In Thursday's action, Reyhan Harmanci sets up a colossal final.
- The Zombie round opens with Buzzfeed's Isaac Fitzgerald reading The Nix and The Underground Railroad.
Все ваши Белый дом принадлежит нам.
- "Will Putin expose the failings of American democracy or will he inadvertently expose the strength of American democracy?" Updated Mar 3, 2017
- Wilbur Ross just wanted to make some money in ethically gray areas (that should've prevented him from taking office).
- Jeff Sessions's spokeswoman can't help but continue to lie.
The oceans are under assault, and not just from the White House and friends.
- Trump's assault on the environment begins with American headwaters. Updated Mar 1, 2017
- Don't just blame the oil companies for destroying the oceans—blame sushi restaurants.
- Nothing escapes the deepest trenches of the ocean floor. Not light, not nutrients, not pollutants.