Saturday, August 22
The 234th day of the year with 131 days left
We are in the 34th week of 2026

4 days until school begins

Tenley tunrs 8 years old today

Mike Kilroy (Explore Clarion) previews the 2026 Central Clarion Wildcats football team. Click Here for article

My Blog for the past month & the past 18 years

Today's temperature is forecast to be NEARLY THE SAME as yesterday.
Normal Temperature for this date: 80°/56°
Yesterday was the coolest of the past 28 days: High 77°, Low 56°, Hourly Average 65°
Forecast for first football game: Kickoff temperature 71° (partly cloudy)
Records for Clarion on August 21 : 93° (1992) 39° (1982)

radar

Click Here for up-to-date hourly forecast for Clarion

Recent Daily Highs and Lows
Clarion, PA

Verse of the Day

Click on the above image for my Devotion Page

A Look Back

It's On My Calendar

last 4 - next 4

The Yankees are on a five game winning streak.
The Phillies have won seven in a row.
Milwaukee is the first team to 80 wins.
The Rays and Padres have each won 20 of their last 30.
The A's have dropped 23 of their last 30.
The Padres and Phillies each have won 14 of their last 20.
The Pirates have lost 12 of their last 20.
William Contreras (Brewers) went 4 for 4 yesterday.
Alec Bohm (Phi) is 13-26 in his last 6 games
PCA has 5 HR in his last 6 games and 11 HR in the last 30 days
Gabriel Moreno has 29 RBI in his last 25 games.
In the last 30 days, Drew Rasmussen of the Rays is 5-0 (2.10).
David Bednar (NYY) is 2-0 with 12 saves (1.84) in the last 30 days
The Pirates average 5.0 runs per game and give up 4.8. Mathematically, they should have a record of 68-62.

Bad Luck Bucs?

The discrepancy between the Pittsburgh Pirates' actual record (63-67) and their Pythagorean record (68-62) stems from poor sequencing, bullpen underperformance, and bad luck in close games. While their actual record shows a sub-.500 team, their positive +30 run differential (650 runs scored vs. 620 runs allowed) indicates they play like a winning team on paper.

Why the Pirates' Records Diverge

Inefficient Run Distribution
They win blowout games by massive margins.
Those extra runs inflate their run differential.
They cannot carry extra runs over to the next game.
High-Leverage Bullpen Failures
The team has suffered from costly blown saves.
Relief collapses turn potential wins into close losses.
The front office overhauled the bullpen to fix this.
Clutch and Cluster Variance
Opponents cluster hits better in high-leverage spots.
The Pirates underperform with runners in scoring position.
Statisticians view this gap largely as "bad luck".

Over a full 162-game season, a team's actual record usually regresses toward its Pythagorean record. The metric suggests the Pirates possess a more talented roster than their current standings show.

ESPN's Top Players of Yesterday

Players of the Week

The current MLB Players of the Week for August 10–16, 2026, are Baltimore Orioles first baseman Pete Alonso (American League) and Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Corbin Carroll (National League).

Alonso earned his sixth career weekly award—and his first with the Orioles—by batting .545 with two home runs.

Carroll claimed his third career NL honor after hitting .409 with seven extra-base hits to power the Diamondbacks' offense.

Current Hitting Streaks