W.C. Fields is rumored to have said, "Philadelphia - wonderful town! Spent a week there one night."
Whether or not he actually did, Philadelphia Phillies fans can appreciate that sentiment during a stretch of six idle pre-World Series days that feel like a month and a half.
It's the same layoff the Phils and their supporters faced last year before the World Series, which also saw bad weather force a two-day intermission in the middle of the final game.
Winning the 2008 championship may have sated the easy-to-please Phillies fans, but it merely stirred the appetites of others.
"I can't wait for it to start again," said Crystal Giannascoli, of Vineland. "I want to go to another parade!"
Washington Township resident Kevin Dennis said he's "kind of bored" by the layoff, but he hasn't allowed himself to dwell on the enormity of the moment.
"I think every day I get more confident that they're going all the way," Dennis said.
Bill Boland, a fan from Pleasantville, has tried to watch the games between the Los Angeles Angels and New York Yankees with "medium" interest.
Boland himself has been coming down from the high of being "all pumped up after winning those two series," he said. But he's confident the Phillies won't let their momentum dissipate: "I think they're good because they've been here before."
Said Giannascoli, "Hopefully, they're enjoying it and relaxing."
Pre-World Series layoffs began to vary noticeably in length in 1985. That was the year Major League Baseball began staging best-of-seven League Championship Series, rather than best of five.
That meant one league's final could go as many as three games longer than the other, plus off-days for travel. Since 1985, various league champions have had as many as eight idle days before the World Series and as few as one.
Fifteen of 20 World Series championships in that period have gone to the better-rested team, which was welcome news to Phillies fans interviewed Sunday.
Of course, the most dramatic exceptions to the trend happened recently. In 2007, the Colorado Rockies lost the Series after eight days off to the Boston Red Sox' two, and the year before, the St. Louis Cardinals won a title on one day's rest.
Vineland resident Mike Chinnici, for one, couldn't care less how long he and the Phillies wait.
"It's fine, let the other series go as far as possible," Chinnici said. "I'm not antsy, just ready to win again."
Contact Eric Scott Campbell:
609-272-7227
