Election campaigns and the World Series have only occasionally become intertwined, but they could be this year.
The World Series and the presidential election: our two traditional fall classics. Once upon a time, they managed to keep a respectful distance from each other, as befitted respectful relations between two sovereigns competing for public attention. As Theodore White wrote in his Making of the President 1960, "There is a politician's rule of thumb, particularly hallowed among Democratic politicians, that no election campaign starts until the World Series is over... when the men at the bar stop arguing about the pitchers and batters and start arguing about the candidates."
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It's a rule that is now hopelessly obsolete and identifies any pundit who continues to cite it (and there have been a few) as a Rip-Van-Winkle type when it comes to the erstwhile "national pastime." In 1960, the seven-game World Series between the Yankees and the Pirates ended on October 13. This year, the series cannot end before this Sunday, October 28, and may extend until November 1, five days before Election Day.