Ever tinkering with chance: Phils fans winning strategies

The staff at the gift shop at Citizens Bank Park is doing everything it can to make sure the Phillies take the World Series title.

So is Estelle Nightswander, 71, of South Philadelphia. And Terry McGovern, 47, of Mount Laurel.

Their methods may differ. But their strategies are the same. At the core of their game plans - don't change a thing.

Whether it means spinning the same Beatles songs, sitting in the same seat, or wearing the same clothes, Phillies fans have their rituals and traditions that they believe ensure the team certain victory.

For the crew at the Majestic Clubhouse - the Phillies' souvenir emporium at the ballpark - it means keeping the right music playing. That would be The Beatles 1, a compendium of the quartet's greatest hits.

The Fightin' Phils won 11 of their last 12 games as the Beatles CD blared from the shop's speakers.

It was "A Hard Day's Night" when it didn't.

"We didn't play the Beatles and they lost the first playoff game," said Roe Rush, a supervisor at the gift shop.

There have been other musical talismans. But none was good enough to ensure the team a title.

"We played Rod Stewart last year and they only made it to the playoffs," Rush said yesterday.

Nightswander keeps herself and her husband planted on their South Philly sofa whenever they take in a game.

"We only get up if we have to," Nightswander said as she shopped with her 3-year-old grandson, Evan Cavaliere, for a Ryan Howard Halloween costume.

Her superstitions extend to other fans, too.

The Nightswanders attended World Series games in the 1980s.

"We wouldn't let the two girls sitting next to us leave their seats either," she said.

McGovern wears the same Phillies home jersey (Chase Utley) and red-and-blue cap every time the team plays.

He has spent $600 on new Phils apparel, but says he won't wear any of it during the World Series.

The one game during the playoffs when he was not dressed in his lucky garb, the Phillies were behind, he said.

Then he realized he didn't have his jersey or hat on.

"I was watching in my pajamas on the couch," he said. "I ran upstairs and put my hat and shirt on, and literally within minutes, Victorino scored the first home run."