Phillies: World Series parade would be canceled due to COVID
By Matt Rappa
If the Phillies win the World Series in 2020, don’t expect a parade
If the Philadelphia Phillies are somehow able to go the distance and win their third-ever World Series championship this season, under manager Joe GIrardi, it appears as though celebrations would look significantly different than the sights and sounds down Broad Street, 12 years ago.
Philadelphia officials announced the cancelation of large public events for six months (through February) on Tuesday due to risks surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic, according to KYW Newsradio. This would include the Thanksgiving Day and Mummers parades, the Broad Street Run, and, yes, even potential sports championship parades.
Among events not affected in this ban, according to KYW, would be events on private property, “including performance venues and stadiums.” However, city health officials expect the Phillies and Eagles to play with no fans in attendance, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.
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“It’s not clear what convinced them that improvement is not coming before 2021,” KYW’s Pat Loeb writes. “Some virus experts have said large events will not be safe until there’s a vaccine. Philadelphia’s health commissioner has said he’s optimistic there will be a vaccine in 2021, maybe even early 2021.”
Sports fans have questioned whether it is even worth sports resuming this year, all the while risking the health of players, coaches, and alike. The NBA and NHL seasons, for example, were paused mid-season, and are now looking to return in “bubble” setups. Major League Baseball’s season was cut from its usual 162 games to just 60, assuming those are able to take place.
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Now, even if the Phillies are able to capture some magic in the 60-game sprint and win their third World Series championship, they would not even be able to celebrate down Broad Street as they did on Halloween in 2008.
Perhaps they could still invite fans inside the “private properties” of Lincoln Financial Field and Citizens Bank Park as they did back then, and also perhaps the Wells Fargo Center. Even still, there is nothing like having a parade. Philadelphia sports fans last got a taste of that in February 2018 after the Eagles defeated the Patriots in Super Bowl 52.
The pandemic has surely changed the landscape of sports in more ways than one.