St. Louis Cardinals
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- For the National Football League team that played in St. Louis from 1960 to 1987, see Arizona Cardinals.
| St. Louis Cardinals Established 1882 |
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| Retired Numbers | 1,2,6,9,14,17,20,42,45,85 | ||
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| Major league titles | |||
| World Series titles (10) | 2006 • 1982 • 1967 • 1964 1946 • 1944 • 1942 • 1934 1931 • 1926 |
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| NL Pennants (17) | 2006 • 2004 • 1987 • 1985 1982 • 1968 • 1967 • 1964 1946 • 1944 • 1943 • 1942 1934 • 1931 • 1930 • 1928 1926 |
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| AA Pennants (4) | 1888 • 1887 • 1886 • 1885 | ||
| Central Division titles (7) | 2006 • 2005 • 2004 • 2002 2001 • 2000 • 1996 |
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| East Division titles (3) [1] | 1987 • 1985 • 1982 | ||
| Wild card berths (1) [2] | 2001 | ||
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[1] - In 1981, the Cardinals finished with the overall best record in the East Division. However, a players' strike in the middle of the season forced the season to be split into two halves. St. Louis finished second in both halves and was thereby deprived of a post-season appearance. |
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The St. Louis Cardinals are a Major League Baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. They are in the Central Division and are the reigning World Series Champions. The Cardinals have the most World Series championship wins in the National League, and are second only to the New York Yankees in the number of World Series championships won.
[edit] Franchise history
[edit] Early years
The team was formed as part of the American Association in 1882 where they enjoyed a four-year dynasty under flamboyant owner Chris von der Ahe. Initially they were known as the "Brown Stockings", named for a previous professional team in the city, whose name was one of several "Stockings" teams inspired by the success of the Cincinnati Red Stockings. This new team's nickname was quickly shortened to "Browns". The Browns squared off against the National League's Chicago White Stockings (now the Cubs) twice in the early version of the World Series. The Series of 1885 ended in dispute and with no resolution. St. Louis won the 1886 Series outright, the only Series of that era that was won by the AA against the NL. The vigorous St. Louis-Chicago rivalry continues to this day.
During the mid-1880s, the National League also had a St. Louis entry, the Maroons, which had come in from the Union Association. The Maroons were by far the strongest entry in the UA, but they had the misfortune of arriving at the time when the Browns were in their glory, and they soon folded.
The Browns joined the National League in 1892 following the bankruptcy of the American Association. They were briefly called the Perfectos in 1899 before settling on their present name, a name reportedly inspired by switching their uniform colors from brown to red. There was already a "Reds" team at Cincinnati, so the St. Louis team became "Cardinals". Also in 1899, the Cardinals' owner transferred much of the talent from the other team he owned, the Cleveland Spiders, to the St. Louis franchise. This led to the demise of the Spiders. Dropping brown as the team color led to its adoption by the new American League franchise, the St. Louis Browns, which co-existed with the Cardinals during 1902-1953 before transferring to Baltimore.
[edit] 1920s: The first NL championship
The Cardinals built themselves into a winner during the mid-1920s, led by second baseman / manager Rogers Hornsby, the closest player the National League had, statistically speaking, to Babe Ruth. In 1926, the Cardinals won their first pennant in 39 years, and then shocked the baseball world by knocking off the powerful New York Yankees in seven games in the World Series. The storied Game 7 reached its climax in the seventh inning when the previous day's winning pitcher, the aging Grover Cleveland Alexander, was summoned in relief to face slugger Tony Lazzeri with the bases loaded (some fans feared that Alexander might have been a little "loaded" himself after celebrating the previous days win). After giving up a long foul ball, "Ol' Pete" then struck out Lazerri swinging on 3 low fastballs. A closely-guarded secret at the time was that both men in that confrontation happened to suffer from epilepsy. The Yankees failed to mount any further rallies and that World Series was a winner for the Cardinals. Years later, a movie was made about Alexander's life titled The Winning Team (1952), starring Ronald Reagan.
The Cardinals fell just short in 1927, then won the pennant again in 1928, edging out the resurging Chicago Cubs and the perennially contending New York Giants. The Cardinals did not fare so well in the World Series, as the Yankees continued their dominance from 1927 and shot down the Cardinals in four straight.
Regardless, the stage was set for the new order of the National League. Innovative Cardinals General Manager Branch Rickey was establishing a minor league farm system that would produce great players and keep the Cardinals in contention for the next two decades. Between 1926 and 1946, the Cardinals, Cubs and Giants would become fierce rivals, that trio winning 17 of the NL pennants to be had during those 21 seasons.
[edit] 1930s: Ol' Diz and the "Gang"
Highlights from Cardinals history include the 1930s era Gashouse Gang featuring Dizzy Dean, Joe Medwick, Pepper Martin, and Leo Durocher.
The Cardinals lost the 1930 World Series to the Philadelphia Athletics 4 games to 2, but came back strong the following year, playing an aggressive game of "inside" ball that broke the back of the A's in 7 games, in what would prove to be the A's Swan Song in post-season play.
In 1934, Dean and his younger brother, Paul, combined to win 49 games - still a single season record for brothers. Dizzy, whose real name was Jerome Herman Dean and was called "Jay" by his pals, won 30 of them, with Paul (facetiously nicknamed "Daffy" by the press) contributing 19 wins. Dean's country humor made him a popular favorite, particularly in the rural south and midwest where Cardinals fans were numerous. The outgoing "Diz" and the shy "Daf" (a pair that Diz called "Me an' Paul") sometimes teamed up in doubleheaders. On September 21, 1934, Dizzy won the first game and then Paul pitched a no-hitter in the second game. Later, Diz jokingly remarked that he wished Paul had told him he was going to throw a no-hitter, because "Then I'd've pitched one too!"
In 1935 the Cardinals were overcome and defeated by the Chicago Cubs, who reeled off 21 straight wins in September. The Cubs clinched the pennant in St. Louis, although their streak had been snapped by then. In 1937, Dizzy Dean's toe was broken by a line drive in the All-Star Game, and he injured his arm during the recovery process, losing his famous fastball, and signalling a brief decline by the Cardinals.
[edit] 1940s: The war years and a young "Man"
In the early 1940s, the Cardinals dominated the National League. The 1942 "St. Louis Swifties" won 106 games, the most in franchise history, and are widely regarded as among the greatest baseball teams of all time. In 1943 and again in 1944 they posted the second best records in team history at 105-49. The 1944 World Series was particularly memorable as they met their crosstown rivals, the St. Louis Browns, in the "Streetcar Series". The Cardinals beat the Browns 4 games to 2 to win the 1944 World Series. Outfielder Stan "The Man" Musial led the ’44 team. Known to loyal fans as "Ol' Number 6", Musial spent 23 years in a Cardinals uniform. In 1968, a statue of Musial was constructed outside Busch Stadium.
After finishing 3 games behind the Cubs in 1945, St. Louis came back to tie for the pennant in 1946, and ousted the Brooklyn Dodgers in a playoff series to get to the World Series. They faced a powerful Boston Red Sox team and defeated them in 7 games, the eventual winning run in Game 7 coming in the eighth inning on Enos Slaughter's famous mad dash around the bases on a hit to shallow left center field.
In 1947, the Cardinals (who were effectively the South's only major league team until the 1960s) gained notoriety by attempting to boycott games against the Brooklyn Dodgers to protest the Dodgers' signing of a black player, Jackie Robinson. The alleged ringleader of the boycott was Enos Slaughter. National League president Ford Frick threatened to ban any players who boycotted any games, and the boycott never happened. The Cardinals did not sign a black regular until Curt Flood in 1958. The Cardinals' resistance to the trend of hiring minority talent contributed to a team slump that ran for much of the next 20 years. However, the organization was also the first Major League team to integrate spring training housing a decade later.
[edit] 1960s
The Cardinals front office continued to improve their minority hiring record, and built the Cardinals into another of their periodic dynasties. In 1963, they made a late-season run against the Dodgers which came close to putting Stan Musial into a World Series in his announced final season. The Dodgers held them off on that occasion, but for the last 5 years before divisional play went into effect and changed the nature of the pennant races, there were only two colors on National League pennants: Dodger Blue and Cardinal Red.
1964 saw one of the wildest pennant races in baseball history. The Philadelphia Phillies seemed to have a commanding lead, but fell apart in the last two weeks of the season, as the Cardinals and other teams pounced on the opportunity. The Cardinals, thanks in part to the mid-season acquisition of Lou Brock from the Cubs, swept a 3-game series from Philadelphia to take over first, then clinched on the last day of the season, finishing a game ahead of the Phillies and the Cincinnati Reds, with the San Francisco Giants and the Milwaukee Braves close behind.
In a series that resembled a rematch of the franchises' first encounter in 1926, the upstart "Redbirds", led by third baseman and captain Ken Boyer, took on the veteran Yankees, which featured his younger brother Clete, also an All-Star third baseman. Ken Boyer's stunning grand slam home run in Game 4 at Yankee Stadium, along with the overpowering pitching of their young hurler Bob Gibson, resulted in a 4 games to 3 win by the Cardinals. This signalled a "Changing of the Guard", as this was the last Series appearance by the "Old" Yankees dynasty. Prior to 2001, the Cardinals remained the only team to hold an overall World Series edge against the Yankees, 4 Series to 3.
In a slightly bizarre post-season twist, manager Johnny Keane, who had been targeted for firing before the Cardinals' made their late-season comeback, left the team and took the job managing the Yankees. The Cardinals then promoted coach Red Schoendienst, who would take the managerial helm for the next 12 seasons.
In 1967, the Cardinals ("El Birdos") romped through the National League and then defeated the Boston Red Sox in the World Series, bursting "The Impossible Dream" bubble of the latter team, which had won their first pennant in 21 years, on the last day of the season. The 1967 team featured future Hall of Famers Lou Brock, Orlando Cepeda, Steve Carlton, and Bob Gibson, who won 3 games in the Series.
In 1968, "The Year of the Pitcher", Gibson finished with an astonishly low ERA of 1.12, and the Cardinals again won the pennant by a double-digit margin. Although essentially the same team as the previous year, they faced a tougher opponent in the Detroit Tigers, who had also won their pennant easily, behind the 31-win season of Denny McLain. Even though both Gibson and McLain were league MVPs that season, another Tigers starter, Mickey Lolich, stole the show, becoming the last pitcher to date to win three complete games in a single Series. The Tigers won the closely contested 7-game affair. It was the last Series appearance for this great Cardinals team, and the last Series before baseball adopted its divisional format.
1969 saw a number of changes as the major leagues expanded into 24 teams and 4 divisions. The resurgent Chicago Cubs led the newly-formed NL East Division for much of the summer before faltering. The Cardinals put on a mid-season surge, as their famous announcer Harry Caray (in what would prove to be his final season of 25 doing Cardinals broadcasts) began singing, "The Cardinals are coming, tra-la-la-la". Ultimately the "Miracle" New York Mets would win the division, the league championship and the World Series.
[edit] 1970s
In 1970, Curt Flood, along with Tim McCarver, Byron Browne, and Joe Hoerner, were to be traded to the Philadelphia Phillies for Dick Allen, Cookie Rojas, and Dick Donovan. However, Flood would challenge the reserve clause since he did not want to play for one of the worst teams in the National League. As a result, Willie Montanez and another player would compensate for Flood as he would set the tone for free agency. Also in 1970, Bob Gibson would continue his dominance as he won another Cy Young Award. He would be the last Cardinal to win it until Chris Carpenter won it in 2005.
Another deal with the Phillies proved to be even more disastrous. Prior to the 1972 season, owner Gussie Busch refused to renegotiate the contract of left-handed pitcher Steve Carlton, who was coming off of his first 20-win season and an appearance in the All-Star Game. Instead of paying the money, Busch traded Carlton to Philadelphia for right-hander Rick Wise. Carlton immediately turned the deal into a steal for the Phillies by winning 27 games and the Cy Young Award for a club that finished the 1972 season at 59-97.
The Cardinals continued to be perennial contenders through the early 70s, led by popular manager Red Schoendienst, but eventually trailed off. Many players came and went through the Gateway to the West. Joe Torre won the 1971 National League MVP award. Others included Jose Cruz, Dick Allen, and Larry Dierker. Changes started to come in the late 70s, and the Cardinals would soon become champions again.
In 1979, Keith Hernandez was the co-NL MVP while Pete Vuckovich and Silvio Martinez each won 15 games. Garry Templeton became the first switch-hitter to collect 100 hits from each side of the plate and led the league in triples for a third consecutive season. Lou Brock received his 3,000th hit in his last season.
[edit] 1980s: Whiteyball and the "Runnin' Redbirds"
After a less-than-successful 1970s, new Cardinal manager Whitey Herzog revived the winning tradition at Busch Stadium. Herzog's brand of baseball, known in St. Louis as "Whiteyball", catered to the hard Astroturf of Busch Stadium and featured speed on the base paths, sparkling defense, and unconventional roster moves. Herzog was known to put the pitcher in right field, bring in a reliever for one batter, and then put the original pitcher back on the mound. In his 11 years as Cardinal manager, Herzog won three National League pennants, and a 1982 World Series title. The 1980s era Cardinals included stars Darrell Porter (1982 NLCS and World Series MVP), Ozzie Smith, Willie McGee (1985 NL MVP who won two batting titles in a Cardinals uniform), John Tudor, Tom Herr, Jack Clark, Bruce Sutter, Keith Hernandez, Terry Pendleton, and Joaquín Andujar.
The 1985 World Series, christened the "I-70 Series" because it featured the in-state rival Kansas City Royals, is perhaps the most controversial in Cardinals history. The Series started ominously for the Cardinals as their rookie lead-off hitter and catalyst, Vince Coleman, who stole 110 bases that year, was run into by the mechanical tarpaulin at Busch Stadium during the NLCS. Scribes joked about a "killer tarp", but the remark proved metaphorical, as Coleman was unable to play in the Fall Classic. Game 6 of that Series featured "The Call". In the bottom of the 9th inning, umpire Don Denkinger called Royals batter Jorge Orta safe at first base — a call refuted by broadcast television's instant replay. The Cardinals, leading 1-0 at the time of the play and needing that victory to clinch the title, went on to lose Game 6 a few batters later by the score of 2-1. The "Runnin' Redbirds" then were blown out of Game 7 the following night, by the score of 11-0, as both of their pitching aces failed to come through on this occasion — John Tudor, who, upon being removed from the game, punched a mechanical fan and severely cut his pitching hand, and Joaquín Andújar, who was ejected by home plate umpire Denkinger for arguing balls and strikes, but it was probably much more than just Denkinger's strike zone bothering the tough Dominican.
The Cardinals again won the National League in 1987, losing to the Minnesota Twins 4 games to 3 in the World Series. This time, St. Louis was without clean-up hitter Jack Clark, the Cardinals' #1 offensive threat, who caught a cleat in the abominable turf at Montreal's Olympic Stadium in the closing days of the regular season. The Series was the first in which the home team won each of the seven games. The Cardinals held their own at Busch Stadium, but the electronically-enhanced crowd noise and the "Homer Hankies" in the Metrodome seemed to spook the Redbirds. The booming bats of the Twins, which seemed to come alive only in the "Homerdome", were too much for the Cardinals "inside baseball" style of offense to overcome. Games 1, 2, and 6 were pretty much blowouts, and in Game 7 the Twins' pitching shut down the Cardinals.
[edit] 1990s: A new era and Big Mac
After August Busch Jr. died in 1989, the Cardinals would finish in last place in 1990 with Whitey Herzog resigning. He was replaced by Schoendienst and eventually Joe Torre. During Torre's tenure in St. Louis, the Cardinals' highest finish was 87 wins (3rd place in 1993).
In 1995, Anheuser Busch, Inc. sold the Cardinal team and Busch Stadium to a new ownership group headed by Southwest Bank's Drew Baur, Fred Hanser and William DeWitt, Jr., for a price substantially undervalued in order to keep the team in St. Louis. Additionally, Civic Center Redevelopment, earlier acquired by AB, sold the parking garages and other surrounding property owned by this quasi-civic organization to the new ownership group.
The new ownership group almost immediately sold off the parking garages next to the stadium to an investment group. With the proceeds of sale from the garages, the cost basis in the team was in the $100 million range, a real steal considering that Forbes Magazine values the Cardinals franchise on the high side of $300 million.
The year before the sale of the team, Anheuser Busch had hired baseball executive Walt Jocketty as their new general manager. With a new ownership group in place and their commitment to return a winning team to St. Louis, Jocketty's expertise in locating baseball talent soon was tested in one of baseball's most successful franchises.
The Cardinals reached the playoffs in 1996 (the first season for long-time Oakland Athletics manager Tony La Russa), but the Atlanta Braves defeated them for the National League pennant. The Cardinals blew a 3-1 series lead to the Braves in the 1996 NLCS.
In 1997, the team finished fourth in the NL Central Division with a record of 73-89. Mark McGwire arrived and hit 24 homeruns in only 51 games. Delino DeShields led the league with 14 triples.
In 1998, Cardinals' first baseman Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs battled to set the record for most home runs in one season. McGwire broke Roger Maris's 37 year-old record of 61 on September 8 with a low line drive over Busch Stadium's left field fence. Somewhat ironically, it was the shortest home run McGwire hit that season. McGwire went on to finish with 70 home runs and had a section of Interstate 70 running through downtown St. Louis re-named "the Mark McGwire Highway". His record stood until Barry Bonds hit 73 in 2001. The anabolic steroids scandals a few years later have possibly tainted these records, but at the time it was great theater and helped baseball recover further from the players' strike in 1994 which had angered and alienated many fans.
[edit] 2000s and beyond
In 2000, the Cardinals lost to the New York Mets in the National League Championship Series. This series followed a series against the Atlanta Braves marked by the implosion of phenom pitcher Rick Ankiel in the NLDS, who had 4 wild pitches in one inning and never regained his form, and is currently trying to make his way back to the big leagues by transitioning to the outfield.
In 2001, the Cardinals finished the season with a 93-69 record. The Houston Astros, also in the National League Central, finished with an identical record. Both teams were awarded a co-championship. [3].Since Houston won the season series against the Cardinals, 9 games to 7 games, Houston received the NL Central playoff seeding and St. Louis received the wild card berth. Major League Baseball refers to the 2001 Cardinals as "co-division champions" along with the Astros and notes that this was the first shared championship in major league history. Helping the Cardinals accomplish this was 21 year old rookie third baseman Albert Pujols, who hit 37 homeruns and won the National League Rookie of the Year award. [4] This year was the last for McGwire, whose arrival in St. Louis had signaled the start of a new era for the Redbirds, and whose injury-prone career finally took too much of a toll upon him. Bud Smith became the 18th rookie since 1900 to throw a no-hitter.
In 2002, the Cardinals won the Central Division and this time defeated the Diamondbacks 3 games to none to reach the NLCS, but lost 4 games to 1 to the San Francisco Giants. The year was also marred with tragedy for the Cardinal family. On June 18, beloved Hall of Fame broadcaster Jack Buck died at the age of 77. Just ten months earlier, Buck (despite ailing from lung cancer and Parkinson's disease) stirred emotions when he addressed the crowd at Busch Stadium when Major League Baseball resumed after the September 11 terrorist attacks. The biggest shock came just four days after Buck's passing when pitcher Darryl Kile died suddenly at the age of 33 of heart failure while in Chicago for a series against the Cubs.
In 2004, St. Louis posted the best record in the Major Leagues, tallying their most wins (105) since the 1940s and earning home field advantage for the NLDS and NLCS. In the Division Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Cardinals rolled, winning the series 3-1. Facing off against division rival Houston in the NLCS, the Cardinals took a 2-0 lead, then lost three straight in Houston. Coming home for Game 6, the Cardinals took a 4-3 lead into the 9th inning, but Houston tied it up. Jim Edmonds hit a walk-off homer in the bottom of the 12th to win the game. The next night, Albert Pujols helped St. Louis win Game 7 to clinch the series with a game tying hit. Pujols was brought home by Scott Rolen's two-run home run. Albert Pujols was named the series MVP.
The Cardinals played the Boston Red Sox in the 2004 World Series. This was the third time the two teams have faced each other in the Fall Classic, with the Cardinals winning the previous two in 1946 and 1967. The Cardinals were again without a key player for the World Series: this time it was ace pitcher Chris Carpenter, who, after going 15-5, tweaked his shoulder in September and missed the entire post-season. St. Louis was ill-prepared for the high-riding Red Sox who had just made history by coming back from a 3 games to none deficit against the Yankees to win the American League Pennant. The Cardinals were swept by the Red Sox in four games, with Boston winning their first World Series championship in 86 years. The best demonstration of St. Louis' troubles in the Series: Pujols, Scott Rolen, and Jim Edmonds, the normally fearsome 3-4-5 hitters for the Cardinals, were a dismal 6-for-45 with 1 RBI.
On August 4, 2005, the Cardinals announced that it bought a 50% share of KTRS 550 AM and was leaving the long time flagship station KMOX 1120 AM after 52 years and moving the games to KTRS in 2006. On September 17, 2005, The Cardinals clinched their fourth NL Central Division title in six years by beating the Chicago Cubs 5-1. This put them into the playoffs for the fifth time in that span. In the first round, the Cardinals swept the NL West Division Champs, the San Diego Padres. The Cardinals said farewell to Busch Memorial Stadium on October 2, 2005 with a 7-5 victory over the Cincinnati Reds. Rookie Chris Duncan hit the final regular season homerun in Busch Memorial Stadium history.
Down to their last out and strike and facing elimination in game 5 of the 2005 National League Championship Series, along with a screaming crowd and the Houston Astros' shutdown closer Brad Lidge's seemingly unhittable breaking pitches, David Eckstein breathed life into the team, hitting a single in the hole on the left side to reach 1st and bring the tying run to the plate. The next batter, Jim Edmonds, swung and missed one of Lidge's ubiquitous sliders but eventually worked a base on balls. With two on Albert Pujols stepped to the plate. After a quick strike, Pujols slammed a towering drive 412 feet onto the train tracks behind left field (had the game been played with the roof open, the drive would have exited Minute Maid Park, as it first hit off the glass wall which forms part of the roof), to put the Cardinals ahead 5-4 and turn the crowd roar into stunned silence (one of the announcers described it as a "vacuum" from the sudden intake of air by the crowd). The blow was reminiscent of Dave Henderson's clutch homer against the Angels in Game 5 of the 1986 ALCS.
Houston was then shut down in the bottom of the 9th by the Cardinals' closer Jason Isringhausen to preserve the win, guaranteeing at least one more game at old Busch Stadium. However, the Astros dominated Game 6, shutting the Cardinals down 5-1 for their first berth in the World Series in franchise history.
That offseason, Chris Carpenter won the Cy Young award and Albert Pujols won the NL MVP award. This made the Cardinals the first NL team since the 1991 Braves to have somebody on their team to win both of these awards the same year (The 2002 Oakland Athletics are the most recent to have a player win both the AL MVP and Cy Young award).
[edit] 2006: A new Busch Stadium, another championship
In the off-season of 2005, the Cardinals needed to fill in the holes left by the retired Larry Walker, as well as Matt Morris, Reggie Sanders, Mark Grudzielanek, John Mabry, and Julian Tavarez, who departed as free agents. The Cardinals first traded pitcher Ray King to the Colorado Rockies for second baseman Aaron Miles and outfielder Larry Bigbie. They later signed free agents Juan Encarnación, Sidney Ponson, Junior Spivey, Braden Looper, Gary Bennett, Jeff Nelson, and Deivi Cruz. All are on the Major League roster except Ponson (optioned, was with the New York Yankees until recently released), Spivey (AAA Memphis Redbirds), Cruz (released), and Nelson (released).
Old Busch Stadium was demolished in the 2005 offseason, and the third Busch Stadium opened on April 4, 2006 with a minor league game between the Memphis Redbirds and the Springfield Cardinals. The home opener was on April 10, 2006, with the Cardinals winning 6 to 4 against the Milwaukee Brewers. A week later, Albert Pujols hit three homers in a row to defeat the Cincinnati Reds.
From June 20-June 28, the Cardinals suffered an eight game losing streak, their longest since July 4-July 15, 1988. This was in large part due to a slump in their starting pitching, and various injuries to Albert Pujols, David Eckstein, Jim Edmonds, and Mark Mulder. A second eight game losing streak occurred from July 27-August 4.
In late September, with a lead of seven and a half games over the Cincinnati Reds, and eight and a half games over the Houston Astros, the Cardinals lost seven straight games, and the Astros won nine straight, giving the Cardinals a lead of only one-half game over the Astros, and two and a half games over the Reds. On the last day of the regular season, despite a 5-3 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers, featuring 9th inning home runs by Chris Duncan, Albert Pujols, and Scott Spiezio, the Cardinals clinched the NL Central title, with the Astros' loss to Atlanta 3-1.
They opened play at San Diego in the first round of the playoffs on October 3. The Cardinals won games one and two with scores of 5-1 and 2-0. The series shifted to St. Louis where they lost game three 3-1; however, the Cardinals won game four with a score of 6-2 to clinch the series.
Their next opponent was the New York Mets in the NLCS, eventually starting October 12 at Shea Stadium. The NLCS was scheduled to begin on October 11, but the game was postponed due to heavy rain. In the first game, despite pitching 5 2/3 shutout innings against the Mets' potent lineup, Jeff Weaver gave up a two-out single to Mets catcher, Paul Lo Duca. Carlos Beltran, who consistently terrorized the Cardinals in the 2004 NLCS, hit a towering two-run home run--the only two runs New York needed to win the game 2-0.
In game two, the Cardinals came back from deficits of 3-0, 4-2, and 6-4 to win the game in dramatic fashion, the first playoff game in 2006 decided with a comeback after the sixth inning. Thanks to a three-run ninth inning against Mets closer Billy Wagner, including a solo blast by So Taguchi, the Cardinals won 9-6 to tie the series going back to St. Louis.
The Cardinals began game three with a fast start, scoring 2 in the first inning and 3 in the second. The scoring included a home run by pitcher Jeff Suppan, his second career longball, both off of Mets starting pitcher Steve Trachsel. Suppan pitched superbly, throwing 8 innings and giving up 3 hits and no runs. The Cardinals won 5-0.
In game four, Anthony Reyes walked four in four innings, giving up two runs and three hits. He left with the game tied 2-2, but the Cardinals' bullpen performed terribly in relief, giving up 10 runs to the Mets' batting order. Carlos Beltran finished with two home runs, Carlos Delgado with a homer and five RBI, and even solo taters by Eckstein, Edmonds and Molina couldn't save the home team as the Cards went down to defeat 12-5. Pujols went 0-4, continuing his disappointing series.
In game five, the Cardinals gave the Mets an early lead, 2-0, but starting pitcher Jeff Weaver effectively shut the door after that, going six innings and giving up only 2 runs and 6 hits. The offense was sparked by Albert Pujols, who hit his first home run and delivered his first RBI of the series in the bottom of the 4th inning. Chris Duncan added a long home run in the 6th, and the St. Louis Cardinals moved one game away from their 17th pennant.
Despite having reigning Cy Young award winner Chris Carpenter on the mound in game six, the Cardinals lost to Mets 4-2.
In game 7, a 9th inning homerun by Yadier Molina put the Cardinals over the Mets 3-1. In the bottom of the 9th Cardinals closer Adam Wainwright overcame a bases loaded situation to strike out Carlos Beltran with a surprise strike on a 0-2 count, thus clinching the NL Pennant with a 3-1 victory over the Mets. Jeff Suppan was named series MVP.
The Cardinals entered the World Series as underdogs to the heavily favored Detroit Tigers. The Cardinals had been underdogs to San Diego in the NLDS and the New York Mets in the NLCS, so not being expected to win in the World Series was nothing new. One reporter said "It's not a question if the Cardinals can win the World Series, it's a question of whether or not the Cardinals can even win a game." The Cardinals won the first game of the World Series in Detroit 7-2. The winning pitcher was Anthony Reyes, outdueling Detroit Tigers pitcher Justin Verlander. This was the first time in Major League history that two rookie pitchers faced each other in Game 1 of the World Series. Reyes retired 17 straight batters and went 8+ innings, whereas Verlander was pulled in the sixth. The game was also characterized by homeruns from Cardinals Albert Pujols and Scott Rolen.
In Game 2, the Cardinals lost 3-1, as Detroit's veteran pitcher Kenny Rogers out-pitched St. Louis's Jeff Weaver, allowing only two hits through eight innings. There was controversy concerning the appearance of dirt or possibly pine tar (an illegal substance in baseball for pitchers) on Rogers's hand; however, after the substance was washed off of Rogers' pitching hand before the second inning, nothing else was done. An ESPN.com online poll showed the majority of ESPN online voters believe Kenny Rogers was cheating. [1]
The Cardinals took Game 3, 5-0. Reigning Cy Young award winner for St. Louis, Chris Carpenter, went 8 innings on 3 hits. Two runs were scored on a Jim Edmonds double, and another two on an error by Detroit pitcher Joel Zumaya.
Game 4 was originally rained out. And although rain threatened the second attempt, it was played the next day and the Cardinals won 5-4 to move within one victory of the World Series title. David Eckstein was the player of the game, hitting an RBI double off Craig Monroe's glove that put the Cardinals on top in the 8th. He also had 3 more doubles and 2 more RBI. An error by the pitcher allowed a run and brought the Tigers up to 6 total errors in the series, 4 being from the pitching staff (more than any other team in World Series History).
On October 27, the Cardinals won game 5, 4-2. The winning pitcher was Jeff Weaver, who went 8 innings, allowing 2 runs with one earned run on 4 hits while striking out 9. Adam Wainwright got the save, striking out Brandon Inge--with another 0-2 surprise strike-- for the final out.
This was the first World Series win for the Cardinals since 1982. David Eckstein was presented the 2006 World Series MVP Award, along with a Chevrolet Corvette Z06, for his performance.
Tony LaRussa joined Sparky Anderson as the only two managers to win the World Series while managing in both leagues.
[edit] Other historical notes
- For much of the last half of the 20th century, the Cardinals' radio flagship was St. Louis powerhouse 1120 KMOX-AM. Over the years such announcers as Harry Caray and Jack Buck (Baseball Hall of Fame honorees), the latter's son Joe Buck, and former Cardinal player Mike Shannon broadcast games over KMOX and its affiliate network. In late 2005, after the Cardinals organization purchased a controlling interest in rival station 550 KTRS-AM, it was announced that KTRS would become the team's new flagship station beginning with the 2006 season. Missouri native and longtime Chicago White Sox announcer John Rooney joined Shannon in the broadcast booth in the inaugural season with the new station.
- Between 1960 and 1987, St. Louis was home to two big-league Cardinals teams, baseball and football. Sports fans and local news coverage got into the habit of saying "the Baseball Cardinals" or "the Football Cardinals" to distinguish the two. Locals also got into the habit of using "Redbirds" to refer specifically to the baseball team. This nickname had been commonly used decades before the football team came to town. As a result, the Football Cardinals became known as the "Gridbirds" or the "Big Red".
- Over the years, Cardinal fans have gained the reputation as being the best and most knowledgeable in the game, according to Peter Gammons and other experts, and St. Louis has been deemed "Baseball City, USA". Players have been known to tell other players that they have not played baseball until they have played baseball in St. Louis. The atmosphere is so addictive that several players have accepted a "home team discount" (lower salary) to remain on the Cardinals (which play in a relatively small market compared to other franchises), most notably Scott Rolen, Mark McGwire, Jim Edmonds, and Albert Pujols.
- St. Louis-Chicago Cubs rivalry draws sell-outs on a regular basis. More recently a new rivalry has developed with the Houston Astros due to the frequent meetings in the NLCS in the past years, and their frequent competition for dominance in the Central Division.
- The Cardinals are one of few teams that do not use a third jersey.
- The Cardinals are second only to the New York Yankees in the number of World Series championships won. The Cardinals are the only one of the eight oldest National League teams to hold an edge over the Yankees in Series play, 3 to 2.
- Of the eight original National League teams, St. Louis was the last to win a league championship, capturing its first NL pennant in 1926 and going on to defeat the heavily favored New York Yankees in the World Series. In all, the Cardinals have won 17 pennants; only the Yankees in the AL have won more league titles.
- Portions of the romantic comedy Fever Pitch were filmed during Game 4 of the 2004 World Series. Hollywood movie stars Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon were filmed celebrating together on the field of Busch Stadium after the Red Sox victory. A brief shot of the filming could be seen live on the Fox broadcast of the World Series. The last out of this game and the ensuing celebration were also briefly shown in a Season 3 episode of Lost.
- In 2005, the Cardinals played their final season in old Busch Stadium. Beginning in 2006, new Busch Stadium became the new home of the baseball Cardinals.
- The Cardinals are one of the few teams to open a stadium with a World Series title in its inaugural year. The last was the 1923 New York Yankees.
- The team's 83 victories during the 2006 regular season are the fewest total victories for a team that went on to win the World Series in a non-strike season. The previous record-holder was the 1987 Minnesota Twins, who had 85 wins in the regular season, but defeated the Cardinals for the championship that year. This was in contrast to the previous two years, when they had the most victories in baseball each year but did not win the Series. In 2004, they won 105 games but were swept by the Red Sox in the World Series. In 2005, they won 100 games, but lost the League Championship Series to the Astros.
[edit] Season-by-season records
| Year | Record | Win % | Place | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1892 | 56-94 | .373 | 11th in NL | |
| 1893 | 57-75 | .432 | 10th in NL | |
| 1894 | 56-76 | .424 | 9th in NL | |
| 1895 | 39-92 | .298 | 11th in NL | |
| 1896 | 40-90 | .308 | 11th in NL | |
| 1897 | 29-102 | .221 | 12th in NL | |
| 1898 | 39-111 | .260 | 12th in NL | |
| 1899 | 84-67 | .556 | 5th in NL | |
| 1900 | 65-75 | .464 | 5th in NL | |
| 1901 | 76-64 | .543 | 4th in NL | |
| 1902 | 56-78 | .418 | 6th in NL | |
| 1903 | 43-94 | .314 | 8th in NL | |
| 1904 | 75-79 | .487 | 5th in NL | |
| 1905 | 58-96 | .377 | 6th in NL | |
| 1906 | 52-98 | .347 | 7th in NL | |
| 1907 | 52-101 | .340 | 8th in NL | |
| 1908 | 49-105 | .318 | 8th in NL | |
| 1909 | 54-98 | .355 | 7th in NL | |
| 1910 | 63-90 | .412 | 7th in NL | |
| 1911 | 75-74 | .503 | 5th in NL | |
| 1912 | 63-90 | .412 | 6th in NL | |
| 1913 | 51-99 | .340 | 8th in NL | |
| 1914 | 81-72 | .529 | 3rd in NL | |
| 1915 | 72-81 | .471 | 6th in NL | |
| 1916 | 60-93 | .392 | 7th in NL | |
| 1917 | 82-70 | .539 | 3rd in NL | |
| 1918 | 51-78 | .395 | 8th in NL | |
| 1919 | 54-83 | .394 | 7th in NL | |
| 1920 | 75-79 | .487 | 5th in NL | |
| 1921 | 87-66 | .569 | 3rd in NL | |
| 1922 | 85-69 | .552 | 3rd in NL | |
| 1923 | 79-74 | .516 | 5th in NL | |
| 1924 | 65-89 | .422 | 6th in NL | |
| 1925 | 77-76 | .503 | 4th in NL | |
| 1926 | 89-65 | .578 | 1st in NL | Won World Series vs New York Yankees, 4-3. |
| 1927 | 92-61 | .601 | 2nd in NL | |
| 1928 | 95-59 | .617 | 1st in NL | Lost World Series to New York Yankees, 0-4. |
| 1929 | 78-74 | .513 | 4th in NL | |
| 1930 | 92-62 | .597 | 1st in NL | Lost World Series to Philadelphia Athletics, 2-4. |
| 1931 | 101-53 | .656 | 1st in NL | Won World Series vs Philadelphia Athletics, 4-3. |
| 1932 | 72-82 | .468 | 6th in NL | |
| 1933 | 82-71 | .536 | 5th in NL | |
| 1934 | 95-58 | .621 | 1st in NL | Won World Series vs Detroit Tigers, 4-3. |
| 1935 | 96-58 | .623 | 2nd in NL | |
| 1936 | 87-67 | .565 | 2nd in NL | |
| 1937 | 81-73 | .526 | 4th in NL | |
| 1938 | 71-80 | .470 | 6th in NL | |
| 1939 | 92-61 | .601 | 2nd in NL | |
| 1940 | 84-69 | .549 | 3rd in NL | |
| 1941 | 97-56 | .634 | 2nd in NL | |
| 1942 | 106-48 | .688 | 1st in NL | Won World Series vs New York Yankees, 4-1. |
| 1943 | 105-49 | .682 | 1st in NL | Lost World Series vs New York Yankees, 1-4. |
| 1944 | 105-49 | .682 | 1st in NL | Won World Series vs St. Louis Browns, 4-2. |
| 1945 | 95-59 | .617 | 2nd in NL | |
| 1946 | 98-58 | .628 | 1st in NL | Won World Series vs Boston Red Sox, 4-3. |
| 1947 | 89-65 | .578 | 2nd in NL | |
| 1948 | 85-69 | .552 | 2nd in NL | |
| 1949 | 96-58 | .623 | 2nd in NL | |
| 1950 | 78-75 | .510 | 5th in NL | |
| 1951 | 81-73 | .526 | 3rd in NL | |
| 1952 | 88-66 | .571 | 3rd in NL | |
| 1953 | 83-71 | .539 | 4th in NL | |
| 1954 | 72-82 | .468 | 6th in NL | |
| 1955 | 68-86 | .442 | 7th in NL | |
| 1956 | 76-78 | .494 | 4th in NL | |
| 1957 | 87-67 | .565 | 2nd in NL | |
| 1958 | 72-82 | .468 | 6th in NL | |
| 1959 | 71-83 | .461 | 7th in NL | |
| 1960 | 86-68 | .558 | 3rd in NL | |
| 1961 | 80-74 | .519 | 5th in NL | |
| 1962 | 84-78 | .519 | 6th in NL | |
| 1963 | 93-69 | .574 | 2nd in NL | |
| 1964 | 93-69 | .574 | 1st in NL | Won World Series vs New York Yankees, 4-3. |
| 1965 | 80-81 | .497 | 7th in NL | |
| 1966 | 83-79 | .512 | 6th in NL | |
| 1967 | 101-60 | .627 | 1st in NL | Won World Series vs Boston Red Sox, 4-3. |
| 1968 | 97-65 | .599 | 1st in NL | Lost World Series vs Detroit Tigers, 3-4. |
| 1969 | 87-75 | .537 | 4th in NL East | |
| 1970 | 76-86 | .469 | 4th in NL East | |
| 1971 | 90-72 | .556 | 2nd in NL East | |
| 1972 | 75-81 | .481 | 4th in NL East | |
| 1973 | 81-81 | .500 | 2nd in NL East | |
| 1974 | 86-75 | .534 | 2nd in NL East | |
| 1975 | 82-80 | .506 | 4th in NL East | |
| 1976 | 72-90 | .444 | 5th in NL East | |
| 1977 | 83-79 | .512 | 3rd in NL East | |
| 1978 | 69-93 | .426 | 5th in NL East | |
| 1979 | 86-76 | .531 | 3rd in NL East | |
| 1980 | 74-88 | .457 | 4th in NL East | |
| 1981 | 59-43 | .578 | 2nd in NL East | |
| 1982 | 92-70 | .568 | 1st in NL East | Won NLCS vs Atlanta Braves, 3-0 Won World Series vs Milwaukee Brewers, 4-3. |
| 1983 | 79-83 | .488 | 4th in NL East | |
| 1984 | 84-78 | .519 | 3rd in NL East | |
| 1985 | 101-61 | .623 | 1st in NL East | Won NLCS vs Los Angeles Dodgers, 4-2 Lost World Series to Kansas City Royals, 3-4. |
| 1986 | 79-82 | .491 | 3rd in NL East | |
| 1987 | 95-67 | .586 | 1st in NL East | Won NLCS vs San Francisco Giants, 4-3 Lost World Series to Minnesota Twins, 3-4. |
| 1988 | 76-86 | .469 | 5th in NL East | |
| 1989 | 86-76 | .531 | 3rd in NL East | |
| 1990 | 70-92 | .432 | 6th in NL East | |
| 1991 | 84-78 | .519 | 2nd in NL East | |
| 1992 | 83-79 | .512 | 3rd in NL East | |
| 1993 | 87-75 | .537 | 3rd in NL East | |
| 1994 | 53-61 | .465 | 3rd in NL Central | No Postseason Due to Player's Strike. |
| 1995 | 62-81 | .434 | 4th in NL Central | |
| 1996 | 88-74 | .543 | 1st in NL Central | Won NLDS vs San Diego Padres, 3-0 Lost NLCS to Atlanta Braves, 3-4. |
| 1997 | 73-89 | .451 | 4th in NL Central | |
| 1998 | 83-79 | .512 | 3rd in NL Central | |
| 1999 | 75-86 | .466 | 4th in NL Central | |
| 2000 | 95-67 | .586 | 1st in NL Central | Won NLDS vs Atlanta Braves, 3-0 Lost NLCS to New York Mets, 1-4. |
| 2001 | 93-69 | .574 | 1st in NL Central# | Lost NLDS to Arizona Diamondbacks, 2-3. |
| 2002 | 97-65 | .599 | 1st in NL Central | Won NLDS vs Arizona Diamondbacks, 3-0 Lost NLCS to San Francisco Giants, 1-4. |
| 2003 | 85-77 | .525 | 3rd in NL Central | |
| 2004 | 105-57 | .648 | 1st in NL Central | Won NLDS vs Los Angeles Dodgers, 3-1 Won NLCS vs Houston Astros, 4-3. Lost World Series to Boston Red Sox, 0-4. |
| 2005 | 100-62 | .617 | 1st in NL Central | Won NLDS vs San Diego Padres, 3-0. Lost NLCS to Houston Astros, 2-4. |
| 2006 | 83-78 | .516 | 1st in NL Central | Won NLDS vs San Diego Padres, 3-1 Won NLCS vs New York Mets, 4-3. Won World Series vs Detroit Tigers, 4-1 |
- Regular Season Totals 8984-8679 .509
- Playoffs 98-85 .536 (21-12, .636 in Postseason Series)
- 10 World Series Championships (#=Won Wild Card)
[edit] Quick facts
- Uniform colors: Cardinal red, White, and Navy blue
- Logo design: One or two cardinals perched on a baseball bat.
- Team motto: Welcome to Baseball Heaven.
- Mascot: Fredbird, an anthropomorphized Northern Cardinal
- Other nicknames: Often called Redbirds, a synonym for the Cardinal bird. Also sometimes called Cards.
- Theme Song:"The Budweiser Clydesdale Jingle (Here Comes the King)" is associated with the team from its time as an asset of Anheuser-Busch. The song was often played by organist Ernie Hays during the Seventh-inning stretch while the Budweiser Clydesdales made a circuit of Busch Stadium. Currently, it is played in the middle of the 8th inning, with the Clydesdales still occasionally making appearances. In addition, other songs that have been associated with the Cardinals are:
- "The Heat Is On" by Glenn Frey, played after Cardinals victories during the glory years of the 1980s and still a beloved song among Cardinals fans who lived in that era.
- "Bad Day" by Daniel Powter, currently played after losses.
- "Shout It Out Loud" by KISS, currently played after wins.
- "We Like To Party" by the Vengaboys, played after playoff wins in 2006.
- "Redbird Fever" by Gretchen Wilson, a country song about Cardinals support in Wilson's rural Illinois home
- "Everytime We Touch" by Cascada, the team's current run-out song.
- "Sandstorm" by Darude, played after home runs
- "Meet Me In St. Louis", played before each game by organist Ernie Hays, with the words scrolled on the scoreboard.
- Pre-bat songs include:
- "Number One Spot" by Ludacris, for David Eckstein
- "Ridin" by Chamillionaire, for Juan Encarnación
- "Rollin'" by Limp Bizkit, for Scott Rolen
- "Temperature" by Sean Paul, for Ronnie Belliard
- "Swing" by Trace Adkins, for Chris Duncan
- "Bat Country" by Avenged Sevenfold, for Anthony Reyes
- "Back in Black" by AC/DC, for Aaron Miles
- Local radio: KTRS
- Local television: FSN Midwest, KSDK Channel 5
- Broadcasters: John Rooney and Mike Shannon on radio, Dan McLaughlin, Al Hrabosky and Joe Buck on FSN, Wayne Hagin and Rick Horton on television.
- Spring Training Facility: Roger Dean Stadium, Jupiter, FL
- Rivals: Chicago Cubs, Houston Astros, Kansas City Royals
- Famous fans: Chingy, J-Kwon, Nelly, Kristin Cavallari, John Grisham, Billy Bob Thornton, Gretchen Wilson, John Goodman, Bill Clinton, Scott Bakula
[edit] Baseball Hall of Famers
- Hall of Fame pitcher Rollie Fingers was with the Cardinals from December 8, 1980 to December 12, 1980, but he never played for the team.
[edit] Retired numbers
 Rogers Hornsby 2B, M Retired 1937 |
 Ozzie Smith SS Retired 1996 |
 Red Schoendienst 2B, M, Coach Retired 1996 |
 Stan Musial 1B, LF Retired 1963 |
 Enos Slaughter RF Retired 1996 |
 Ken Boyer 3B, M, Coach Retired 1984 |
 Dizzy Dean SP Retired 1974 |
 Lou Brock LF Retired 1979 |
 Jackie Robinson 2B Retired 1997 |
Bruce Sutter RP Retired 2006 |
 Bob Gibson SP Retired 1975 |
 Gussie Busch Owner Retired 1984 |
Jackie Robinson's number 42 was retired throughout baseball in 1997. The Cardinals 'retired' the number 42 a second time in Sept. 2006 as Bruce Sutter had been elected to the Hall of Fame earlier in the year.
Cardinal stockholders honored Busch with the number 85 on his 85th birthday, in 1984. Also, while not officially retired, the number 25 of Mark McGwire (1B, 1997-2001) has not been reissued since he retired, the number 51 of Willie McGee (OF 1982-1990, 1996-1999) has not been reissued since the late 2001 season, and the number 57 of Darryl Kile (P, 2000-02) has not been reissued since his death in the middle of the 2002 season. Also A Memorial 57 in a circle in the Cardinals Bullpen for Darryl. The team also honored longtime radio commentator Jack Buck by placing a drawing of a microphone on the wall with the retired numbers.
Joe Garagiola likes to mention that his number was also retired; he wore 17, the same number as Dizzy Dean.
The Cardinals have retired the second-most numbers in baseball (10), behind only the New York Yankees (16), although the Los Angeles Dodgers have also retired 10 numbers.
At Busch Memorial Stadium, the retired greats were honored with large flagpoles in the center field scoreboard area that had flags with their numbers on them, while at the base of them was a large sign with the number and the player's nickname (for instance, Stan Musial's flagpole had "6 STAN the MAN" at the base of it). At the current Busch Stadium, the numbers were first memorialized in small circles below the scoreboard in right-center field: when several members of the local media complained (including influential columnist Bernie Miklasz of the Post-Dispatch), the Cardinals erected a mural on the left field wall with pictures of the players as well as their numbers.
[edit] Current roster
[edit] 40-man roster
As of December 13, 2006
|
Active Roster (23) Pitchers (12)
Catchers (2) Infielders (6)
Outfielders (5)
|
Extended Roster (11) Pitchers (5)
Catchers (1)
Infielders (2)
Outfielders (2)
|
Coaches
( |
[edit] Minor league affiliations
- AAA: Memphis Redbirds, Pacific Coast League
- AA: Springfield Cardinals, Texas League
- Advanced A: Palm Beach Cardinals, Florida State League
- A: Quad City Swing, Midwest League
- Short A: Batavia Muckdogs, New York-Penn League
- Rookie: Johnson City Cardinals, Appalachian League
[edit] See also
- Cardinals award winners and league leaders
- Cardinals statistical records and milestone achievements
- Cardinals all-time roster
- Cardinals broadcasters and media
- Cardinals managers and ownership
- Cardinal Nation
- St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame Museum
[edit] Notes and references
[edit] External links
- St. Louis Cardinals official web site
- Current records and standings
- The Birdhouse - Scout.com - Cardinals major and minor league news, interviews and more
- Redbird Central - Team news, features and multimedia
- "In The Cards" Major League Blog by Brady Holzhauer
- St. Louis Cardinals Team Index at Baseball Reference
- Gateway Redbirds - Cardinals news, forums and blogs.
