Reader Mike M. passed this along recently:

Just saw something that you might want to turn into a Page 2 article or a blog post.

Take a look at this ESPN.com poll asking if you are rooting for the Pirates to win the World Series:

The highest percentage of Yes votes (at least as I type this) is coming not from the state of Pennsylvania. It is coming from the state of Minnesota. I'm thinking that Justin Morneau may have something to do with this.

He was correct at the time of sending ... since then, Pennsylvania has edged slightly ahead of Minnesota, with 77 percent of the state responding yes compared to 75 percent from Minnesota.

But yes, Morneau (and Francisco Liriano ... and maybe a tiny fraction with Garrett Jones) certainly has an influence.