Contact:  Bob Chartuk                 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
                                      10/24/97

Snow fell during the coldest ever game in World Series history. Bats were breaking like toothpicks, players wore turtle necks and had gloves on their throwing hands, and the preferred sports beverage was hot coffee.

At least they can say they were warned--The National Weather Service had issued snow and cold weather advisories even as the Marlins and Indians were leaving for Cleveland after their opening games in sunny Florida.

"Maybe we should replace the seventh inning stretch with the seventh inning Iditarod," joked one of the announcers as low temperatures set a World Series record at 38 degrees at Jacobs Field (18 with the wind chill). In the stands, fans who heeded the weather service warnings were dressed in winter attire and the weather's effect on the play was a constant source of speculation.

According to Bill Comeaux, meteorologist in charge of the weather service's Cleveland office, the baseball world can thank a mass of cold air pushing down from Canada for buffeting the Fall Classic with winter-like conditions.

"We knew almost five days ahead of time the cold front would push through our area, and with Jacobs Field close to Lake Erie, there was a strong potential for Lake Effect Snow on game day," Comeaux said. "Our forecasts and advisories were widely distributed and it looked like everyone--from the players to the fans--was prepared."