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Baseball-Chicago fans celebrate rare World Series trip
(Reuters)
Updated: 2005-10-18 11:37
CHICAGO, Oct 17 (Reuters) - Chicago is known as the Second City, and its
sports fans often feel like second-class citizens, but on Monday they savoured a
rare taste of success as the White Sox clinched a long-elusive World Series
berth.
For a team that has fixed a World Series more recently than it has won one,
and has not appeared in the championship since 1959, just getting to the
post-season was an accomplishment.
Sweeping the defending champion Boston Red Sox in the first round was a
bonus.
Knocking off the Los Angeles Angels in California on Sunday to win the
American League pennant sparked a frenzy in the city that earned its nickname
because it once ranked behind only New York City in population and was rebuilt
after burning to the ground in the Great Fire of 1871.
"Party like it's 1959!" screamed the banner headline on the front page of the
Chicago Tribune.
Traffic was backed up around Midway Airport before dawn on Monday as fans
welcomed home their victorious team. Fireworks were heard around the city
overnight but there were no reports of the violence that has marred other sports
celebrations.
Even as fans partied, Chicago showed it still has a big chip on its broad
shoulders -- columnists and talk show hosts were already on the defensive about
claims the White Sox are not popular enough to draw viewers for a World Series
against either the Houston Astros or St. Louis Cardinals.
The Astros have a 3-1 lead in the best-of-seven National League Championship
Series and can reach their first World Series with victory on Monday at
Houston's Minute Maid Park.
"We're told America won't care about such a B-list match-up. We tell America
we could not care less what it thinks," wrote Chicago Tribune columnist Rick
Morrissey.
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