Which Chicago Baseball Team Is Getting More Online Love From Fans?

By Marcus Gilmer in Miscellaneous on Apr 29, 2010 2:00PM

Usually when we see the term "Internet algorithm," our eyes glaze over. But one being used by the Neilsen folks is helping to rank how much Major League Baseball fans currently love or hate their team. The algorithm uses various keywords on internet searches to measure the current "online sentiment" of major league teams. We assume the Neilsen folks then add some peanut butter, unicorn hair, and pixie dust, put it in a blender, and press the "purée" button and then presto! The teams are ranked on a scale ranging from -5 to 5 (why this instead of, say, 1 to 10 is beyond us). Of course, some media outlets are reporting the list as a "Most Hated in Baseball" list, which isn't really true. The list is more a reflection of what fans think of their team so far in the 2010 season rather than actual hate. We just can't buy that kind of list where the Yankees aren't number 1.

So where do Chicago's teams fall after three weeks of the 2010 season? The Cubs, so far the picture of middle of the road mediocrity at 10-12 fall smack in the middle ranking 16th. But that's still higher than when they started. Yes, even though the Cubs' bullpen has blown a bunch of leads and the offense can't score runs half the time, fan sentiment for the Cubs is actually higher now than it was at the beginning of the season. But despite a recent winning streak, the Sox are ranked much lower thanks to an underwhelming 8-13 start. Sox fans, though, aren't alone in their dealing with frustrated fans (see: Houston Astros and their slow start).

For the heck of it, here's the Bottom 10 teams in "online sentiment" among fans.

1. Cleveland Indians (0.9)
2. Boston Red Sox (1.1)
3. Cincinnati Reds (1.5)
4. Houston Astros (1.8)
5. New York Yankees (1.8)
6. Washington Nationals (1.9)
7. Chicago White Sox (2)
8. Baltimore Orioles (2)
9. New York Mets (2.3)
10. Los Angeles Dodgers (2.4)