With Philadelphia and New York 108 miles apart and the New Jersey Turnpike between them, here's an offbeat look:
The problems of premature publication
The Philadelphia Inquirer ran a three-quarter-page ad from Macy's on Monday congratulating the Phillies on winning back-to-back World Series championships and featuring a $25 T-shirt commemorating the event. It wasn't a show of confidence but a mistake, and the Inquirer apologized, saying they "apologize for this error and any inconvenience this caused." It wasn't much different from last week, when before Game 6 of the ALCS mlb.com was selling Yankees AL championship merchandise.
Remembering HK
The Phillies do several things to remember legendary broadcaster Harry Kalas, who collapsed and died April 13. They have patches on their jerseys and a sign on the leftfield wall with his initials, and they place his sky-blue blazer and white shoes in the dugout for each game. Monday, there was a new addition: a 2-foot-high cake replica in the media dining room, made and delivered by Cosmi's Pastries.
Faces in the crowd
Comedian Chris Rock, actor Jim Caviezel (Jesus, Passion of the Christ), mega-agent Guy O'Leary (who supposedly introduced A-Rod and Madonna) and Celtics star Rajon Rondo were among the celebs expected for Game 5 on Monday. … Biff Henderson was working on a segment to air on David Letterman's late show. … Ex-Phillie and current Ray Pat Burrell "hung around" the Rittenhouse Square area of downtown Philly with some buddies before attending Saturday's game then was to head to Tampa for a charity event Monday. … Phillies Hall of Famers Jim Bunning and Robin Roberts (up from the bay area) threw out the first pitches. … Rock singer Alanis Morissette performed the anthem.
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