Edwin Tufte's website, which sells this poster, says: Probably the best statistical graphic ever drawn, this map by Charles Joseph Minard portrays the losses suffered by Napoleon's army in the Russian campaign of 1812. Beginning at the Polish-Russian border, the thick band shows the size of the army at each position. The path of Napoleon's retreat from Moscow in the bitterly cold winter is depicted by the dark lower band, which is tied to temperature and time scales.
I was thinking of this on Sunday when I saw some data from the Boston Globe, much simpler in intent, but very powerful nonetheless. The Globe had determined how many Major League Baseball players hit 40 home runs in a given season. The chart, which I reconstucted from the Globe's, looks like this:
Interesting, eh? (Remember 1994 was shorted by a strike.) Early adopters, rapid penetration, and then, well, Balco.
From 1996 to 2006, three players led their league in home runs at least three times: Mark McGwire, Ken Griffey Jr. and Alex Rodriquez. I wonder how Bonds and McGwire feel about that?
But wait--we don't want to misinterpret the data, or jump to conclusions. It could just be that a particularly strong class of home run hitters flourished and aged together, like a pig in a python.
Yeah, right.
So, one day when your grandchild asks, "When was the Steroid Era in baseball," you need not say a word. Just point to the graphic and smile. . .
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