| St. Louis Cardinals | |||
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| 2012 St. Louis Cardinals season | |||
| Established | 1882 | ||
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| Retired numbers | 1, 2, 6, 9, 14, 17, 20, 24, 42, 42, 45, 85 | ||
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| Major league titles | |||
| World Series titles (11) | 2011 • 2006 • 1982 • 1967 1964 • 1946 • 1944 • 1942 1934 • 1931 • 1926 |
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| NL Pennants (18) | 2011 • 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) | 2009 • 2006 • 2005 • 2004 2002 • 2000 • 1996 |
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| East Division titles (3) [1] | 1987 • 1985 • 1982 | ||
| Wild card berths (2) [5] | 2011 • 2001 | ||
| Front office | |||
| Owner(s) | William DeWitt, Jr. and Fred Hanser | ||
| Manager | Mike Matheny | ||
| General Manager | John Mozeliak | ||
The St. Louis Cardinals are a professional baseball team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are members of the Central Division in the National League of Major League Baseball. The Cardinals have won 11 World Series championships, the most of any National League team, and second overall only to the New York Yankees, who have won 27. They have played in 18 Fall Classics tying them with the Dodgers and Giants for most World Series appearances among National League clubs and second overall to the Yankees' 40 appearances.
The Cardinals were founded in the American Association in 1882 as the St. Louis Brown Stockings, taking the name from an earlier National League team. They joined the National League in 1892, and have been known as the Cardinals since 1900. They were called the "Perfectos"[6] in 1899. The Cardinals began playing in the current Busch Stadium in 2006. The Cardinals have a long-standing rivalry with the Chicago Cubs.
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The Cardinals were founded in 1882 as a member of the American Association called the St. Louis Brown Stockings. The club quickly achieved success, winning four AA pennants in a row in 1885–1888. St. Louis played in an early version of the World Series, the first two times against the National League's Chicago White Stockings, now named the Chicago Cubs. The 1885 series ended in dispute, but St. Louis won the 1886 series outright, beginning a St. Louis-Chicago rivalry that continues to this day.[7] The American Association went bankrupt in 1892, and the Browns moved to the National League, leaving much of their success behind for the next three decades. The club changed its name to the "Perfectos" in 1899, before adopting the "Cardinals" name in 1900.[6]
From 1902–1954, an American League team, the St. Louis Browns, also played in St. Louis. The Browns moved to Baltimore in 1954 and became the Baltimore Orioles.
The Cardinals' fortunes in the National League began to improve in 1920, when Sam Breadon bought the club and named Branch Rickey his general manager. Rickey immediately moved the Cardinals to Sportsman's Park to become tenants of their American League rivals, the St. Louis Browns, and sold the Cardinals' ballpark. Rickey used the money from the sale to invest in and pioneer the minor league farm system, which produced many great players and led to new success for the Cardinals.[8]
Led by Rogers Hornsby, who won the Triple Crown in both 1922 and 1925, the Cardinals improved dramatically during the 1920s. They won their first National League pennant in 1926 and then defeated the favored New York Yankees in seven games to win the World Series. In 1927, now led by Frankie Frisch, the Cardinals fell just short, before claiming another pennant in 1928.
The Cardinals kept winning in the next decade, claiming back-to-back pennants in 1930 and 1931. The Cardinals matched up with the Philadelphia Athletics in both World Series, losing in 1930 but returning to win the 1931 series. In 1934 the team, nicknamed the "Gashouse Gang" for their shabby appearance and rough tactics, again won the pennant and then the World Series over the Detroit Tigers. Dizzy Dean won 30 games that season, the last National League pitcher to reach that mark. Joe Medwick won the Triple Crown in 1937, the last National League hitter to achieve the feat, but the Cardinals failed to win a pennant in the second half of the decade.[9]
Outfielder Stan "the Man" Musial joined the Cardinals in 1941. Musial spent 22 years in a Cardinals uniform and won three NL MVP Awards. Led by Musial, 1942 MVP Mort Cooper, and 1944 MVP Marty Marion, the Cardinals dominated the National League during World War II, winning three straight pennants from 1942–1944. The 1942 "St. Louis Swifties" won a franchise record 106 games and defeated the Yankees in the World Series. The team then posted 105 wins in both 1943 and 1944. The Cardinals fell to the Yankees in the 1943 World Series rematch. The 1944 World Series was particularly memorable, as the Cardinals met their crosstown rivals, the St. Louis Browns, in the "Streetcar Series," with the Cardinals prevailing for their fifth title. In 1946 the Cardinals finished the season tied with the Brooklyn Dodgers, but claimed the pennant in a first-ever best-of-3 playoff series (2 games to 0). The Cardinals then won the World Series in 7 games against the Boston Red Sox. In the bottom of the 8th inning in Game 7, with the score tied at 3–3, Enos Slaughter scored on a "Mad Dash" from first on a double to left-center to win the game and the series.[9]
Rickey had left the Cardinals to become general manager of the Dodgers in 1942, and after their 1946 win, the Cardinals slid back to the middle of the National League. In 1953 the Anheuser-Busch brewery bought the Cardinals, and August "Gussie" Busch became team president. He soon purchased Sportsman's Park from St. Louis Browns owner Bill Veeck, renovated the ballpark, and renamed it Busch Stadium. The Browns, who had not been as successful or popular as the Cardinals in three decades, realized they could not compete with the deep pockets of the brewery. After the 1953 season the Browns left St. Louis to become the Baltimore Orioles, and the Cardinals were left as the only major league team in town.[10]
Outfielder Stan "the Man" Musial
The Cardinals achieved another period of success in the 1960s with the help of a trade and a dominating pitcher. In 1964 the Cardinals traded pitcher Ernie Broglio and two other players to the rival Cubs for outfielder Lou Brock and two other players. The trade, since nicknamed "Brock for Broglio," has become emblematic of a trade which in retrospect was ridiculously lopsided. The Cardinals would prove to be on the good side of the trade, as Brock would successfully replace Musial, who had retired at the end of 1963, in left field. Behind Brock, MVP third baseman Ken Boyer, and pitcher Bob Gibson, who won 19 games, the Cardinals won the 1964 World Series over the Yankees, with Gibson named series MVP. In 1966 the Cardinals moved to the new Busch Memorial Stadium, where they hosted the MLB All-Star Game that summer. The next year the team, after winning 101 games during the regular season, won the 1967 World Series over the Red Sox. Gibson pitched three complete-game wins, allowing only three earned runs, and was named World Series MVP for the second time. In 1968, nicknamed the "Year of the Pitcher" because of the domination of pitching over hitting throughout the majors, the Cardinals' Bob Gibson proved to be the most dominant pitcher of all. Gibson's earned run average of 1.12 is a live-ball era record, and he won both the NL Cy Young Award and the NL MVP Award. Behind Gibson's season the Cardinals reached the 1968 World Series and faced the Detroit Tigers. Gibson would pitch another three complete games and set a World Series record with 35 strikeouts, including a single-game World Series record 17 in Game 1, though he ended up losing in the deciding Game 7. Gibson would win a second Cy Young Award in 1970, and Joe Torre won the NL MVP Award in 1971, but the Cardinals would fail to win a pennant during the 1970s.[10]
The Cardinals returned to their winning ways in 1981, but were left out of the playoffs in the strike-affected season; despite posting the best overall record in the NL East, they finished in second place in each half of the split season. But just like in 1964, a trade would propel the Cardinals upward. Before the 1982 season began the Cardinals acquired shortstop Ozzie Smith from the San Diego Padres via a trade in exchange for Garry Templeton. With Smith, and playing a form of baseball nicknamed Whiteyball after manager Whitey Herzog, the Cardinals won the 1982 World Series over the Milwaukee Brewers. Herzog's Cardinals then reached the 1985 World Series against the Kansas City Royals. The series was nicknamed the "I-70 Series" after the highway that connects the two in-state rivals. The Royals won in seven games, but the series is most remembered by Cardinals fans for a blown call by umpire Don Denkinger in Game 6. The Cardinals would also reach the 1987 World Series, losing to the Minnesota Twins in seven games.[11] The series against the Twins was noteworthy as being the first where the home team won every game (which happened again 4 years later when the Twins defeated the Atlanta Braves).
The Cardinals hit another period of little success in the early 1990s. Joe Torre replaced Herzog as manager, but failed to make the playoffs despite several winning seasons. Before the 1996 season the Cardinals were purchased by new owners led by William DeWitt, Jr. and hired Tony La Russa away from the Oakland Athletics. The team won the NL Central that season and defeated the Padres in the NLDS before falling to the Atlanta Braves in 7 games in the NLCS. In 1998, the Cardinals were the focus of the baseball world as slugging first baseman Mark McGwire broke the single season home run record by hitting 70 home runs. McGwire's epic pursuit of Roger Maris' record along with the Cubs' Sammy Sosa helped to re-popularize baseball after the 1994 strike.[11]
The new millennium brought new success. The new era began when shortly before the 2000 season the Cardinals traded for Jim Edmonds and later when McGwire went down to what turned out to be career ending injuries midseason. Jim Edmonds would help to lead the Cardinals to the playoffs for the first time since 1996. They would lose to the New York Mets 4-1 in the NLCS playoffs but would return to postseason play the following year with the help of 2001 rookie of the year Albert Pujols. Pujols would have arguably the best first 11 years in the history of the game. The Cardinals, led by a core that included Albert Pujols, Jim Edmonds, and later Scott Rolen, reached the playoffs in six of the next seven years. The Cardinals reached the playoffs in 2000, 2001, and 2002, then missed in 2003 before advancing to the NLCS in each of the next three years, punctuated by two trips to the World Series in 2004 and 2006.
In 2004, the Cardinals won 105 games, the best record in baseball, then defeated the Dodgers in the NLDS and the Houston Astros in a seven-game NLCS to reach the 2004 World Series against the Boston Red Sox, who swept the Cardinals. The Cardinals lost only 4 times in a shutout in the regular season, but were shut out 3 times in the postseason, including 1 shutout loss in every series in the playoffs (4–0 to the Dodgers in Game 3 of the NLDS, 3–0 to the Astros in Game 5 of the NLCS, and 3–0 to the Red Sox in Game 4 of the World Series).
The Cardinals won 100 games and another Central Division title in 2005, but lost in an NLCS rematch to the Astros. This was also the final season for Busch Memorial Stadium. Albert Pujols won his first MVP award. He would later become the franchise's first 3 time MVP award winner since Stan Musial. Meanwhile, Chris Carpenter became the franchise's first Cy Young award winner since Bob Gibson.
In 2006, the Cardinals moved to the new Busch Stadium. Despite winning only 83 games during the season (The second lowest win total and winning percentage of a World Series team behind the '73 Mets), the Cardinals defeated the San Diego Padres in the NLDS and the New York Mets in a seven game NLCS. In the 2006 World Series, the Cardinals faced the heavily-favored Detroit Tigers, but won in five games for the franchise's tenth World Series title.[12] This also marked the first time since the 1923 New York Yankees that a Major League team opened up a new ballpark with a World Series Championship.
On August 22, 2009, they defeated the San Diego Padres for the 10,000th win in franchise history, becoming only the fourth team to accomplish the feat, after the San Francisco Giants, Chicago Cubs, and Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Cardinals became the first Major League Baseball club to clinch a division title in 2009, beating the Colorado Rockies on September 26. The Cardinals were considered strong contenders for the league pennant because of their strong starting pitching and offense, but were swept in three games by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the best-of-five NLDS, despite having beaten the Dodgers five of seven times in the regular season.
The 2009 season also saw three Cardinal players lead the National League in three categories. Pujols's 47 home runs was tops in the majors, pitcher Adam Wainwright's 19 wins was the most in the National League (and tied for most in the majors with three American League pitchers), and Chris Carpenter's ERA of 2.24 was the best in the National League. Pujols won the MVP award, while Carpenter and Wainwright finished 2nd and 3rd in Cy Young Award voting. Carpenter was also named the National League's Comeback Player of the Year.
The success of the 2000s were clouded by no small measure of tragedy. On June 18, 2002, long-time Cardinals radio broadcaster Jack Buck died. Four days later, Cardinals starting pitcher Darryl Kile died in his sleep, apparently of heart failure, before a game in Chicago against the Cubs. On April 29, 2007, also during a series with the Cubs, Cardinals relief pitcher Josh Hancock, 29, was killed in a car accident while driving drunk when his vehicle collided with a stopped tow truck that was aiding a disabled motorist on Interstate 64, not far from Busch Stadium.[13]
The 2011 season will go down as one of baseball's most compelling cinderella stories. On August 24, after the Cardinals played their 130th game of the season (only 32 remained), they were 10½ games behind the Wild Card leading Atlanta Braves. They went 23-9 to finish 90-72, a game better than Atlanta's 89-73, to win the Wild Card on the final regular season game marking the largest comeback in history after 130 games.[14][15][16] An impressive comeback as the Braves play in a different division, making it harder to gain games as head-to-head games are fewer.[17]
The Cardinals played the Philadelphia Phillies in the NLDS. The Phillies were heavily favored to win. However, the Cardinals defeated them 3-2. Game 5 was notable for the pitching duel between Phillies ace Roy Halladay and Cardinals ace Chris Carpenter, both friends and former teammates. Halladay left after giving up just one earned run over eight innings. He was bested by Carpenter who threw a complete game 3 hit shutout, winning 1-0. The first National League playoff series to end in a 1-0 score.[18]
In the NLCS, the Cardinals defeated the favored Milwaukee Brewers 4-2, to win their 18th National League pennant. This ranks them among the Dodgers and Giants for most in the National League (the Cardinals, Dodgers, and Giants together account for approximately half of all NL pennants won). They are second overall to the 40 by the Yankees.[19]
The Cardinals defeated the Texas Rangers in seven games to win their 11th World Series championship. Game 6 of the series is now considered one of the greatest post-season accomplishments and games of any MLB team, with the Cardinals winning in 11 innings. After being down two different times to their last strike away from elimination to the Rangers, MVP David Freese delivered clutch hits (a triple driving in two runs to tie in the 9th, and a lead-off game-winning home run in the 11th) to move the Cardinals onto Game 7.
On December 16, 2011, the Cardinals won the Organization of the Year award from Baseball America for the first time. Baseball America has given this award since 1982.[20]
The Cardinals play their home games at Busch Stadium in downtown St. Louis. Busch Stadium, also called Busch III, opened for the 2006 season at a cost of $346 million[21] and can hold 46,861 people.[22] but Game 7 of the 2011 World Series had a record 47,399 due to increased standing room only tickets. The Cardinals finished their inaugural season in the new Busch Stadium by winning the 2006 World Series, becoming the first team since the 1923 New York Yankees to win the World Series in their first season in a new ballpark. The ballpark has numerous statues of former Cardinal players who are hall of fame inductees outside, including the iconic statue of Stan Musial in front of the third base entrance.
Busch Stadium is the Cardinals' fourth home ballpark and the third to be named Busch Stadium. The Cardinals' original home ballpark was Sportsman's Park from 1882–1892 when they were playing in the American Association and known as the Browns. To begin the 1893 season, the Cardinals moved to a new ballpark five-blocks to the northwest of Sportsman's Park originally called New Sportsman's Park but more commonly remembered as Robison Field which served as their home from 1893–1920.[6] Midway through the 1920 season the Cardinals abandoned Robison Field and returned to the original Sportsman's Park and became tenants of their American League rivals, the St. Louis Browns. In 1953, the Cardinals were purchased by the Anheuser-Busch Brewery and the new owner subsequently purchased Sportsman's Park from the Browns and renamed it Busch Stadium, becoming Busch I. The Browns then left St. Louis for Baltimore after the season. The Cardinals moved to Busch Memorial Stadium, or Busch II, in downtown St. Louis during the 1966 season and played there until 2005.[10] It was built as the multi-purpose home of both the baseball Cardinals and the St. Louis football Cardinals, now the Arizona Cardinals. The current Busch Stadium was constructed immediately south of and partly on top of the site of Busch Memorial Stadium.
The Cardinals hold spring training at Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter, Florida. They share the complex, which opened in 1998, with the Miami Marlins. Before moving to Jupiter, the Cardinals hosted spring training at Al Lang Field in St. Petersburg, Florida from 1937–1997.
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The Cardinals have had few logos throughout their history, although those logos have evolved over time. The first logo associated with the Cardinals was an interlocking "SL" that appeared on the team's caps and or sleeves as early as 1900. Those early uniforms usually featured the name "St. Louis" on white home and gray road uniforms which both had cardinal red accents. In 1920 the "SL" largely disappeared from the team's uniforms, and for the next 20 years the team wore caps that were white with red striping and a red bill. In 1922, the Cardinals wore uniforms for the first time that featured two cardinal birds perched on a baseball bat over the name "Cardinals" with the letter "C" of the word hooked over the bat. This logo, colloquially referred to as the "birds on the bat," originally had the birds perched on a black bat and "Cardinals" in printed letters. An alternate version of this logo with "St. Louis" replacing "Cardinals" appeared in 1930 and was the primary logo in 1931 and 1932 before "Cardinals" returned. In 1940 the now-familiar "StL" logo was introduced on the team's caps. The interlocking "StL" has undergone several slight modifications over the years but has appeared on the team's caps every year since. The first appearance of the "StL" in 1940 coincided with the introduction of navy blue as a uniform color. From 1940 until 1955 the team wore navy blue caps with red bills and a red interlocking "StL" while the jerseys featured both cardinal red and navy blue accents. In 1951 the "birds on the bat" logo was changed to feature a yellow baseball bat.[24] In 1956 the Cardinals changed their caps to entirely navy with a red "StL," removing the red bill. Also, for that one season, the Cardinals wore a script "Cardinals" wordmark on the their uniforms without the "birds on the bat." However, an updated version of the "birds on the bat" logo would return in 1957 with the word "Cardinals" now written in cursive beneath the bat. In 1962, the Cardinals were the first National League team to display players' names on the back of their jerseys. In 1964 the Cardinals changed their caps to be all red with a white interlocking "StL." In 1967, the birds on the bat emblem on the jersey was again tweaked, making the birds more realistic and changing the position of their tails relative to the bat. This version would remain on all Cardinals game jerseys through 1997. In 1971, following the trend in baseball at the time, the Cardinals replaced their more traditional flannel front-button shirts and pants with belts with new pullover knit jerseys and elastic waist pants. Yet another trend in baseball led the Cardinals to change their road uniforms from gray to light blue from 1976–1984. In 1992 the Cardinals returned to wearing more traditional button-down shirts and pants with belts. That same year they also began wearing an all-navy cap with a red "StL" on the road only while wearing the same red and white cap at home games. In 1998 the "birds on the bat" was updated for the first time in 30 years with more detailed birds and bolder letters. In 1998 the Cardinals also introduced a cap featuring a single cardinal bird perched on a bat, which they wear only on Sunday home games. The new birds on the bat design was tweaked the very next year, with yellow beaks and white eyes replacing the red beaks and yellow eyes of the 1998 version. Uniform numbers also returned to the front of the jerseys in 1999 after a two year absence. Over the years the Cardinals have also used other marketing logos that never appeared on uniforms that showed anthropomorphized cardinals in a pitching stance, swinging a baseball bat, or wearing a baseball cap.[24]
The team mascot is an anthropomorphic cardinal wearing the team's uniform named Fredbird. He is assisted by Team Fredbird, a group of eleven women who entertain fans from the field and on top of the dugouts.
While unofficial, the Rally Squirrel gained popularity during the 2011 postseason. First making its appearance in Game 3 of the NLDS on Oct. 4, the Rally Squirrel caused quite a stir in St. Louis. As the Cardinals were at-bat against the Phillies in Game 4 (Oct. 5) of the NLDS, a squirrel ran across home plate in the middle of a pitch from Roy Oswalt to Skip Schumaker. The Cardinals would win Game 4 and subsequently Game 5 (Oct. 7) in Philadelphia to advance to the NLCS.
The Cardinals–Cubs rivalry refers to games between the Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs. The rivalry is also known as the I-55 series (or in earlier years the Route 66 series), deriving its name from the roadway connecting the two cities, Interstate 55 (which itself succeeded the famous U.S. Route 66). The Cubs lead the series 1,096–1,054 through 2011,[25] while the Cardinals lead in National League pennants with 18 against the Cubs' 16. The Cubs have won 10 of those pennants in Major League Baseball's Modern Era (1901-present), while all 18 of the Cardinals' pennants have been won since 1901. The Cardinals also have a clear edge when it comes to World Series successes, having won 11 championships to the Cubs' 2. The Cardinals have enjoyed an overwhelming advantage over their Chicago rivals in the regular season standings since the Cubs last participated in a World Series (1945): in the 66 seasons from 1946 through 2011 the Cardinals have finished ahead of the Cubs 49 times. In that same span the Cardinals have had 45 seasons in which their winning percentage was over .500, while the Cubs have finished over that mark 19 times (they finished at an even .500 twice).[26][27] Cardinals-Cubs games see numerous visiting fans in either St. Louis' Busch Stadium or Chicago's Wrigley Field.[28] When the National League split into two, and then three divisions, the Cardinals and Cubs remained together. This has added excitement to several pennant races over the years, most recently in 1989, 2003 and 2004; the first two times the division title was won by the Cubs, the third by the Cardinals, who went on to win the National League pennant as the Cubs faltered in the second half of the 2004 season.
Although both teams play in the state of Missouri, they played each other for the first time in the 1985 World Series, which the Royals won in seven games, but which is perhaps best remembered for a controversial call from umpire Don Denkinger in Game 6. Due to their geographical proximity, the teams face each other every regular season in interleague play. This is sometimes referred to as the I-70 Series.
| St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Famers | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Affiliation according to the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Names in bold received the award based on their work as Cardinals broadcasters.
* Played and broadcast for the Cardinals
Rogers Hornsby 2B, Mgr Honored 1937 |
Ozzie Smith SS Retired 1996 |
Red Schoendienst 2B, Mgr, Coach Retired 1996 |
Stan Musial OF, 1B, GM Retired 1963 |
Enos Slaughter RF Retired 1996 |
Ken Boyer 3B, Mgr, Coach Retired 1984 |
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Dizzy Dean SP Retired 1974 |
Lou Brock LF, Coach Retired 1979 |
Whitey Herzog Mgr, GM Retired 2010 |
Bruce Sutter RP Retired 2006 |
Bob Gibson SP, Coach Retired 1975 |
Gussie Busch Owner Retired 1984 |
Jack Buck Broadcaster Honored 2002 |
When Rogers Hornsby was honored in 1937, "SL" was used in place of a number as he played mostly in an era without numbers.[39]
The Cardinals 'retired' the number 42 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) was not reissued following his retirement and McGwire has resumed wearing it as the Cardinals hitting coach; the number 51 of Willie McGee (OF 1982–1990, 1996–1999) has not been reissued since late in the 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. (Kile is honored with a small circular logo bearing his initials and number on the wall of the Cardinal bullpen, as is deceased pitcher Josh Hancock. Hancock's number 32 also has not been reissued since his death in early 2007).
The team also honored longtime radio commentator Jack Buck by placing a drawing of a microphone on the wall with the retired numbers.[39]
The Cardinals have retired the second-most numbers in baseball with 11, behind only the New York Yankees' 16.
In St. Louis, Cardinals games on radio can be heard over KMOX (1120 AM), a news-talk station owned by CBS Radio. Mike Shannon and John Rooney alternate as play-by-play announcers, with Mike Claiborne serving as pre-game and post-game host. KMOX's 50,000-watt clear-channel signal covers much of the continental United States at night. KMOX also feeds the games to a network of 115 stations, covering all or portions of Missouri, Illinois, Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Tennessee. At one time, owing to the Cardinals' status as a "regional" franchise, the Cardinals' radio network reached almost half of the country.
The 2011 season marks the Cardinals' return to KMOX following five seasons on KTRS (550 AM), a talk station which is also 50-percent owned by the team. The Cardinals and KMOX had previously enjoyed a partnership that spanned over portions of seven decades, and continuously since 1954. But the relationship ended after the 2005 season when CBS Radio and the Cardinals failed to reach terms on a new rights agreement, resulting in the team leaving KMOX in favor of 5,000-watt KTRS.
Fox Sports Midwest (branded as FSCARDINALS during games) is the team's exclusive television broadcaster, airing all games with the exception of selected Saturday afternoon games on Fox (via its St. Louis affiliate, KTVI) or Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN. In addition to Fox Sports Midwest, Cardinals games are also seen on Fox Sports Indiana, Fox Sports South, Fox Sports Tennessee, Fox Sports Oklahoma, and SportSouth for fans living within the Cardinals broadcast territory who do not receive the Fox Sports Midwest channel.
A weekly magazine program, Cardinal Nation, airs on St. Louis' NBC affiliate KSDK. Cardinals games had been seen on KSDK (and its predecessor, KSD-TV) from 1947 through 1958, 1963 through 1987, and 2007 until 2010. KPLR-TV was the Cardinals' other over-the-air broadcaster, carrying games from 1959 through 1962 and from 1988 until 2006.
Dan McLaughlin is the lead play-by-play announcer on FS Midwest, with Al Hrabosky serving as color analyst and Rick Horton alternating between play-by-play and color. Jimmy "the Cat" Hayes serves as dugout reporter during the games, and appears with Pat Parris and Cal Eldred on the Cardinals Live pre- and post-game show. (Joe Buck, the son of legendary Cardinals announcer Jack Buck, had previously teamed with Hrabosky; the younger Buck is currently the lead play-by-play caller for Fox Sports' national Major League Baseball and National Football League broadcasts.) All telecasts on FS Midwest are shown in High-definition television.
Opening Day payrolls for 25-man roster (since 2000):[48]
| Opening Day Salary | ||||
| Year | Salary | |||
| 2000 | $ 63,900,000 | |||
| 2001 | $ 78,538,333 | |||
| 2002 | $ 74,660,875 | |||
| 2003 | $ 83,786,666 | |||
| 2004 | $ 83,228,333 | |||
| 2005 | $ 92,106,833 | |||
| 2006 | $ 88,891,371 | |||
| 2007 | $ 90,286,823 | |||
| 2008 | $ 99,624,449 | |||
| 2009 | $ 88,528,409 | |||
| 2010 | $ 94,220,500 | |||
| 2011 | $ 109,048,000 | |||
The annual financial records of the St. Louis Cardinals according to Forbes since 2009.
| Annual Snapshot of St. Louis Cardinals finance | |||||
| Year | $ Franchise Value (mil.) 1 | $ Revenue (mil.) 2 | $ Operating Income (mil.) 3 | $ Player Expenses (mil.) 4 | Wins-to-player cost ratio 5 |
| 2009 | $ 486 | $ 195 | $ 7 | $ 120 | 87 |
| 2010 [49] | $ 488 | $ 195 | $ 12.8 | $ 111 | 100 |
| 2011 [50] | $ 518 | $ 207 | $ 19.8 | $ 110 | 94 |
1 Based on current stadium deal (unless new stadium is pending) without deduction for debt, other than stadium debt.
(2011: Market $206 mil., Stadium $136 mil., Sport $111 mil., Brand Management $65 mil.)
2 Net of stadium revenues used for debt payments.
3 Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
4 Includes benefits and bonuses.
5 Compares the number of wins per player payroll relative to the rest of MLB. Playoff wins count twice as much as regular season wins. A score of 120 means that the team achieved 20% more victories per dollar of payroll compared with the league average in 2010.
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