1.   Burns said leaving town for nearly two weeks poses a very difficult challenge.

2.   Leaving town on an extended holiday is simply out of the question.

3.   Leaving town, however, leaves a political vacuum.

4.   Psychologically, it ranks right up there with the possibility of the Kansas City Royals someday leaving town.

5.   The last-place Tampa Bay Devil Rays did all they could to prevent the New York Yankees from leaving town with another AL East title.