Owner Dan Farrell and his crew at Lenny's Restaurant are in a bit of a pickle.
One more Tampa Bay Rays victory and they'll be pitted against the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series. For almost 30 years, Lenny's has been the local hangout of the Phillies and their fans who migrate to Clearwater in February for spring training.
"This is like their home," said Loraine Bronson, who has served their tables for eight years. "You see the same faces year after year."
But they could be returning next week.
The restaurant, at 21220 U.S. 19 N, is filled these days with Rays fans.
But the walls at Lenny's are a constant reminder that the Phillies settled this spot.
There are autographed shirts and bats. A couple of walls are Phillies red, and one holds a banner that reads, "Winter Home of the Philadelphia Phillies."
Even the menu says Philadelphia with items such as scrapple and Taylor ham.
"If you don't know what it is, you're not from Philadelphia," Bronson said.
For the record, scrapple is a loaf made of pig scraps, spices and flour, and Taylor ham is a kind of pork roll that's often sliced and fried.
Outside Lenny's, a row of red seats from Jack Russell Stadium, the team's former spring training field, gives customers a place to sit while waiting for a table.
The team now plays at Bright House Field, a couple of blocks north of the restaurant.
Farrell, 43, who has been running around Lenny's since he was 8, said his father, a baseball fan, opened the restaurant in 1980.
Before long, he was hosting minor league players at the restaurant and catering for the major league players at the stadium.
Philadelphia fans followed. A bulletin board is covered with photographs of children tacked up by fans.
"Some of those little kids are bringing in their kids now," Farrell said.
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