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The average price of a gallon of self-serve unleaded gasoline in Orange County fell by 2.4 cents today, an usually large daily decline, while the Los Angeles County average price fell 1.5 cents. The Orange County average price fell to $3.367, 38.4 cents less than at this time last month and $1.231 less than the record high of $4.598 set on June 19, but 36.5 cents more than at this time last year, the Oil Price Information Service reported. The average has fallen for 30 consecutive days, decreasing 38.4 cents over that span, including 2.6 cents from Monday to Tuesday. The Los Angeles County average declined to $3.404, 36.3 cents less than at this time last month and $1.222 less than the record high of $4.626 set June 21, but 38.3 cents more than at this time last year.The average price has fallen for 29 consecutive days, declining 36.3 cents over that span. The dropping prices are a result of lower demand, a steady decline in crude oil prices, stemming in part from the worldwide economic downturn, and reduced speculation by futures traders, Automobile Club of Southern California spokesperson Jeffrey Spring told City News Service.Crude oil costs account for two-thirds to three-quarters of the price of a gallon of gasoline, according to Tupper Hull, director of strategic communications for the Western States Petroleum Association, a trade association representing major oil companies in six Western states. The price of a barrel of light sweet crude for November delivery fell $2.56 on the New York Mercantile Exchange Tuesday to $78.63. The price has fallen 47 percent since hitting a record high of $147.27 on July 11.


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Once an annual most valuable player candidate, Ortiz is now the Red Sox’ most vaporized presence. He endured an unfathomable 0-for-12 stretch during the American League Championship Series before a meaningless triple Tuesday night late in the Tampa Bay Rays’ 13-4 spanking of the Red Sox. The loss came a day after his team’s similar 9-1 embarrassment. After striking out in the eighth inning, Ortiz heard a smattering of boos from the formerly fawning Fenway Park crowd. As Boston teeters on the brink of being sent home by a franchise it once toyed with like catnip, Ortiz’s struggles have emphasized how his team’s identity has changed in the short and the long term.