iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Lewie Pollis

Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 22/11/2024

Pretty gross to see people treating Jameis Winston, who has twice been accused of sexual assault, as having folksy charm

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 4h

I had forgotten about this research I did! My findings a couple years ago may be relevant for all these playoff bullpen games: "After controlling for quality of talent, a postseason-wide shift of one inning per game from starters to relievers is associated with a 47-point increase in ERA."

thelewsletter.lewispoll.is

Is This How the Strikeout Era Ends?

How the 2024 playoffs could change modern pitching philosophy

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 19h

I left a disappointed but polite comment and they deleted it!

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 21h

Very strange to hear T-Mac calling a non-Phillies baseball game

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Reposted by Lewie Pollis

Erika Hall @erikahall.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

I know people in every industry saying "I need to get out of this industry".

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Jacob Pomrenke @buckweaver.bsky.social · 29/09/2026

Reminder: The Braves can stop playing this anytime they choose.

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 28/09/2026

...and here is your reminder that letting the starter pitch deep into a game (or at least deeper than most modern managers' leashes) is not just more aesthetically satisfying, but also smart strategy. There is tangible, quantifiable value in minimizing the number of ours your bullpen has to cover!

thelewsletter.lewispoll.is

The Case for Leaving the Starter In

Quantifying the hidden costs of bullpen overexposure

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 29/09/2026

For non-Rhode Islanders, Ken Block is one of the funniest figures in modern American politics. I can't believe he's still around and kicking

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 29/09/2026

Our favorite Thai place just announced they were under new management and immediately started posting stuff like this. Come on man

A very sloppy GenAI flier advertising deals for a Thai restaurant

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Reposted by Lewie Pollis

Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 26/09/2026

This was legitimately one of the proudest moments of my life

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 28/09/2026

I am deferring my lasagna-baking to tomorrow due to jetlag and vaccine side effects. But I have enough energy to ask you to get involved with bringing hot meals to neighbors in need wherever you are: lasagnalove.org/volunteer

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 28/09/2026

thelewsletter.lewispoll.is

The Case for Leaving the Starter In

Quantifying the hidden costs of bullpen overexposure

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 28/09/2026

This specific combination is a known Chicago thing! I had it when I was there a few years ago and it was fantastic. These are Emparogis: www.instagram.com/p/CbczcaKOST...

A dish of pierogi-empanada fusion dumplings

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 28/09/2026

For those who heard it mentioned on Rates & Barrels (thanks @dvr.bsky.social!), here's the math explaining why so few Wild Card series go to a do-or-die Game 3. Though I like @enosarris.bsky.social's theory about Game 1 winners setting themselves up well for the next game too

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 28/09/2026

Since the MLB playoffs expanded, we haven't seen nearly as many climactic Game 3s in the Wild Card round as fans have hoped — 11 out of 16 series ended in 2-0 sweeps. A couple years ago I broke down the math to explain why sweeps are, in fact, mathematically more likely than going three games.

thelewsletter.lewispoll.is

Why Do Most Wild Card Series End in Sweeps?

A simple mathematical explanation for why we don't see more Game Threes

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 27/09/2026

I always thought it was funny that they made A-Rod so mid

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 27/09/2026

I watched Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri for the first time on the plane last night, and goodness gracious. I found myself checking the time lapse every few minutes because I didn't want it to end and was afraid it was about to. What a masterpiece

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 27/09/2026

I was up for a full 24 hours straight while we traveled home yesterday, and just woke up at 5:30pm Paris time. It may be a couple weeks before I'm confident in what year it is

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 26/09/2026

This was legitimately one of the proudest moments of my life

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 26/09/2026

You can say what you want about the French, but they are innovators in the field of “letting you walk around the airport with a reasonably priced 7% beer”

A can of beer with a yellow label reading la Goudale

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 24/09/2026

Guess who just won Star Wars bar trivia in a language I don’t even speak

A man with a huge smile takes a selfie in a bar with a Star Wars Lego set

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 20/09/2026

The Crunchwrap of Notre Dame

A selfie of two people holding crepes in front of the Notre Dame

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 19/09/2026

Was thinking about the Percy Shelley poem while in the Ozymandius room at the Louvre. “Look on my works, ye mighty” hits different in that context. You’re telling me this Rameses dude painted the Mona Lisa? Hell yeah man. Nice job.

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 19/09/2026

Another year older and she’s already being recognized as a classic. Bon anniversaire, @mrslewsonfirst.bsky.social!

A woman poses in front of an empty frame in a hall at The Louvre

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 19/09/2026

There’s a broken but still usable escalator just past the security line at The Louvre. I’m glad Mitch Hedberg is finally getting the recognition he deserves.

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 17/09/2026

With apologies to 24 and first two Nolan Batman movies...it's The West Wing

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 17/09/2026

Me, normally: [has no issues with continence or controlling bodily functions] Me, packing a suitcase: What if I need two changes of pants every day for the entirety of my trip??

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Reposted by Lewie Pollis

Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 16/09/2026

Also accepting restaurant recommendations

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 16/09/2026

Also accepting restaurant recommendations

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Reposted by Lewie Pollis

Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 15/09/2026

ICYMI: I wrote about David Morales, municipal snowplowing, and a whole raft of high-profile candidates who flopped in the Rhode Island primary — from a bloc of conservatives funded by a campaign-finance loophole to the sitting mayor and governor — thanks to their outward contempt for the voters.

thelewsletter.lewispoll.is

The Audacity of Hope Street

Providence elects a mayor who actually likes his city

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Reposted by Lewie Pollis

Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 09/02/2026

Poor Robert Kraft was already having a bad week after the latest Epstein files drop. And now this? Cut the poor man some slack

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Matt Trueblood @matrueblood.bsky.social · 15/09/2026

In the at-bat of the year, Tristan Peters might have won the Central for the scrambling, scrapping White Sox. All he had to do was survive 18 pitches in which Gavin Williams made, I dunno, 1.2 mistakes? www.baseballprospectus.com/news/article...

baseballprospectus.com

Eighteen Pitches | Baseball Prospectus

Breaking down a battle for the ages, that also took ages.

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 15/09/2026

I'm not a PR professional, but if I were, I would advise my celebrity clients against issuing statements saying "I am not complicit"

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Reposted by Lewie Pollis

Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 15/09/2026

If that last part seems self-explanatory, here's an example of how insular Rhode Island politics are: A municipal official *from another town* spent the morning in my mentions Well Actuallying my critiques of my mayor on an issue where I explicitly conceded that Brett Smiley was blamed inordinately

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 15/09/2026

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 15/09/2026

The second blizzard of 2026 was hard for everyone. For the first one, other areas far exceeded Providence's responsiveness and communication. When that happens under a mayor who was elected on a pledge to clear snow well, people notice. So Smiley lost the benefit of the doubt before the next storm.

“Why is it that every time it snows, it’s as if it’s the first time we’ve ever plowed?” Smiley asked. “It shouldn’t take days to do snow removal, and proper snow removal includes not just cleaning the streets, but sidewalks and bike lanes.”

Somewhere along the way Smiley must have changed his mind. This past January, a blizzard covered the city in about 16 inches of snow. A lot, though certainly not unheard of for winter in New England. But Smiley’s administration seemed completely unprepared. To steal his phrase, it was indeed as though it were the first time the city had ever plowed, and constituents noticed. Cleanup in Providence lagged well behind that in other nearby municipalities. You could tell where the city borders were by how the condition of the streets abruptly changed when you passed over them. Communication was abysmal. Two days after the blizzard, by which point the city had proclaimed the roads safe for vehicles, a loop of lasagna deliveries that I could normally do in 20 minutes took me nearly two hours of white-knuckling through frictionless ice sheets and impassable snow drifts. Sidewalks and bike lanes that the mayor had deemed essential before taking office were simply never touched. Meanwhile, Smiley monitored the situation from afar while attending a conference in Washington, D.C.

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 15/09/2026

thelewsletter.lewispoll.is

The Audacity of Hope Street

Providence elects a mayor who actually likes his city

111

Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 15/09/2026

I hit four straight doubles to start off a game in MVP Baseball 2005 today, so I tried to look up whether that was a record. Google helpfully informed me that this tied a record set by Cleveland on April 12, 1998 against the Orioles. Pretty cool! Except here's Cleveland's box score from that day:

baseball-reference.com

Anaheim Angels vs Cleveland Indians Box Score: April 12, 1998 | Baseball-Reference.com

Anaheim Angels beat Cleveland Indians (12-1). Apr 12, 1998, Attendance: 42555, Time of Game: 2:51. Visit Baseball-Reference.com for the complete box score, play-by-play, and win probability

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Reposted by Lewie Pollis

Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 14/09/2026

I wrote about David Morales, Brett Smiley, and the radical belief that politicians should like the constituents they serve. Some reflections on Rhode Island’s primary election results, and why they don’t fit nearly into an ideological box:

thelewsletter.lewispoll.is

The Audacity of Hope Street

Providence elects a mayor who actually likes his city

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 14/09/2026

Brisket, Cooper Sharp, basil salt on grilled schmaltz-infused challah

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Sam G. Howard @samghoward.riliberator.com · 14/09/2026

Here's another take on what happened on Wednesday.

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 14/09/2026

This is the most-quintessential Brett Smiley story I have ever heard. Ideology aside, it's so satisfying that this guy ended up as the first incumbent mayor to lose a primary in the history of Providence. This backlash, as much as insurgent left, is the story of Rhode Island's election last week.

Last October, long before the Providence mayoral primary was at the forefront of voters’ minds, a friend was canvassing to get the word out about an upstart progressive challenger named David Morales. She rang at the door of a large house on the East Side, introduced herself as a volunteer for Morales’ campaign, and started her voter-outreach spiel: “What issues do you care about?”

The man at the door, who is apparently harder to recognize when not wearing his signature circle-frame specs, was Brett Smiley. The prospect of polite conversation with an engaged constituent made him visibly uncomfortable. “I don’t want to embarrass you, but I’m the mayor.” He said the issue he cared about was “I’d like to keep my job,” then awkwardly shuffled back inside.

This was pretty benign as far as Smiley stories go. It’s funny, not malicious — unlike, say, his darkening Morales’ skin in a campaign attack ad. Yet it perfectly illustrates the fundamental problem with both Smiley’s administration and his campaign.

Imagine this scene, so saccharine that even Aaron Sorkin would roll his eyes: an idealistic activist gets a surprise audience with the top dog, who in turn has a chance to encourage a youthful constituent’s civic engagement while setting her straight about how things really work at City Hall. In a state that’s hardly known for political energy, a young voter who cares enough about municipal elections to be knocking doors 11 months before a primary is exactly the kind of person with whom a small-city mayor should be thrilled to engage. Instead, Smiley walked away.

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 14/09/2026

thelewsletter.lewispoll.is

The Audacity of Hope Street

Providence elects a mayor who actually likes his city

0176

Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 14/09/2026

Outside of Providence, the takeaway from last week's primary was the triumph of the left. I don't think that's the whole story. Voters across the state are simply sick of leaders who don't give a shit. And David Morales loves his community in a way Brett Smiley does not. Today at The Lewsetter:

thelewsletter.lewispoll.is

The Audacity of Hope Street

Providence elects a mayor who actually likes his city

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 13/09/2026

Is Trevor Lawrence good now or is he just playing the Browns

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 13/09/2026

If that was the intended target then it was legitimately one of the best throws Watson has made in five years with the Browns

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Lewie Pollis @lewispoll.is · 13/09/2026

Broadcast talking about how the Browns were designing an offense around helping Deshaun Watson make simple, smart decisions. Naturally he threw a pick within the first three minutes

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