Once A Cardinal Always A Cardinal

Rest in peace Bob Forsch. The former Cardinals pitcher passed away today from an heart attack. He's known in Cardinal Nation for throwing multiple no hitters. He pitched for the Cardinals in 1982, 1985, and 1987. The year 1982 was another World Series win for the Cards. He was a teammate with Ozzie Smith. In Ozzie Smith's own words: "Bob Forsch was a fierce competitor and a great teammate. Bob was one of the finest men I had the pleasure to play with and my deep condolences go to his children and family. Heaven just got a starting pitcher." He was only 61 years old and leaves behind a wife and two daughters. In his career he's had 1,133 strikeouts, a 3.76 ERA and a .533 winning percentage. Seems like only just yesterday Mr. Forsch was out throwing the first pitch during game 7 of the 2011 World Series at Busch Stadium.  

11 In 11 Baseball Heaven

The World Series Commissioner's Trophy
with the Cardinals
pitcher Jason Motte (on the left) and Lance Berkman (on right)
Photo credit: Charlie Riedel/Reuters



The Cardinals journey should become a movie.

Cardinals Hall of Famers

It was good seeing my guy David Eckstein, former Cardinals short-stop and 2006 World Series MVP. He's still a hottie! It was also nice seeing baseball living legends: Stan Musial, Lou Brock, Ozzie Smith, Bob Gibson, and Red Schoendienst, during the pregame ceremonies.  Here's a list of the other Cardinals Hall of Famers:

Players	Years played with Cardinals
Pete Alexander	1926-1929
Walter Alston #	1936
Jake Beckley	1904-07
Jim Bottomley *	1922-32
Roger Bresnahan	1909-12
Lou Brock *	1964-1979
Mordecai Brown	1903
Jesse Burkett	1899-1901
Steve Carlton	1965-1971
Orlando Cepeda	1966-1968
Roger Connor	1894-1897
Dizzy Dean *	1930, 1932-1937
Leo Durocher *#	1933-1937
Dennis Eckersley	1996-1997
Frankie Frisch *	1927-1937
Pud Galvin	1892
Bob Gibson *	1959-1975
Burleigh Grimes	1930-1931, 1933-1934
Chick Hafey *	1924-1931
Jesse Haines *	1920-1937
Rogers Hornsby *	1915-1926, 1933
Miller Huggins #	1910-1916
Rabit Maranville	1927-1928
John McGraw #	1900
Joe Medwick *	1932-1940, 1947-1948
Johnny Mize *	1936-1941
Stan Musial *	1941-1944, 1946-1963
Kid Nichols	1904-1905
Wilbert Robinson #	1900
Red Schoendienst *	1945-1956, 1961-1963
Enos Slaughter *	1938-1942, 1946-1953
Ozzie Smith *	1982-1996
Bruce Sutter	1981-1984
Dazzy Vance	1933-1934
Bobby Wallace	1899-1901, 1917-1918
Hoyt Wilhelm	1957
Vic Willis	1910
Cy Young	1899-1900

* Played more games with Cardinals than any other team
# Elected as a Manager or Executive

"The reality is that, if we don't win tomorrow, this game becomes just a footnote to a nice season. But if we win tomorrow, this is the stuff of legends." ~Cardinals right fielder, Lance Berkman

Kiener plaza downtown, St. Louis, MO.

FANtastic Friday Morning

Of course I am having a FANtastic Friday morning! Last night game 6, greatest game in baseball history! Eleven innings, tied points, last chances, strike outs, hits, errors, fireworks. The ending score: Cardinals 10, Rangers 9! "And we will see you tomorrow night!", best words of the game. The hero of the game, Cardinal #23, Mr. Freese, making a home-run! It was such a neck and neck, nail biter game. I always did think it was going to come down to a game 7. I actually prefer these type of games over the ones where there is a big lead and a clear winner. Quite honestly, I was getting tired of the kind of games that take forever before someone gets a single point. Just one fabulously immaculate game is all I needed and I'm all set. Whatever happens after this point I'm truly cool, eventhough another win with a trophy and bragging rights would be even cooler. Take me out of the microwave 'cause I'm done folks! And yes, once again the Clydesdales made an appearance before game 6 and I was eating a Baby Ruth mini candy bar.

I also enjoyed some double fudge pan brownies.
 Yep, no calorie counting over here.

What's Up Zooey Deschanel?

Doug Pensinger/Getty Images

I love Zooey Deschanel's fashion sense and she definitely did not disappoint fans with that. I also love her as an singer, but I think she could have sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" alot better. Eventhough, it was still kinda in her same singing style. It was a little too simple and sweet for me. Where's the dash of sparkle? This is the World Series. At least she got the words to the song correct. And what was up with her leaving game 4 so early? Guess she and the whole cast of her new show, "New Girl" had better things to do. Famous St. Louis native, sports announcer Joe Buck, had just got done commending the cast during the game for not leaving like most celebrities. Then after that they left in the 6th inning. Joe Buck jokingly said, "Maybe they're just out getting a snack... all of 'em at once." There's still love for her. Guys drool over her, and I want to be her friend so that I can share her glam squad!

Manifest Destiny of the Cardinals

Game 3 was not all luck against the Rangers, it was part of the manifest destiny for the Cardinals! They used professional skills and took advantage at opportune moments. BUT you know how us baseball fans are so superstitious any way. So here are some events that happened that could have attributed to another extremely successful outcome:

1. The Budweiser Clydesdales were able to make another appearance before game 3, this time at the Rangers baseball stadium!
2. There's plenty of born and raised Texans who are actually Cardinals fans!
3. Albert Pujols was more than a little upset from losing the previous game and didn't hold any interviews after the game. The media tried to get on his case about it, but he took his frustrations and turned it into positive energies for game 3. Totally smashing the Texas Rangers to smithereens, ending the game with a score of 16-7!
4. I was eating Baby Ruth's candy during the game! Now Pujols is part of the record breaking ring with the likes of Babe Ruth and Reggie Jackson for hitting 3 home runs in a single World Series game! Babe Ruth did it in game 4, of 1926 and 1928. Reggie Jackson did it in game 6 of 1977.
5. Overall, we're gonna win the whole she-bang because we're overdue and on the quest for 11.

 I'm just saying...LOL

Baseball Movie Favorites

Whether it's over the summertime or during the World Series most people will enjoy a good baseball movie. Movies related to baseball that I enjoy while relaxing and munching on popcorn include:

1. The Sandlot
2. A League of Their Own
3. The Jackie Robinson Story
4. The Pride of St. Louis
5. The Rookie
6. Field of Dreams
7. The Bad News Bears
8. Kid From Left Field
9. Mr. 3000 
10. Rookie of The Year
11. 61*
12. Major League

These movies will surely continue to create new memories for generations to come. Especially, with some of these movies having the best timeless and memorable quotes. Now who can ever forget, "There's no crying in baseball!", from A League of Their Own or the emphasis on the word "forever" in the movie, The Sandlot?By the way, Kevin Costner is "the go to guy" when it comes to baseball films, isn't he? He has starred in films: Bill Durham, Field of Dreams, and For The Love of The Game.

P.S. I totally found this website if you're planning on doing some serious small business, tailgating, themed party throwing, carnival having, movie watching family fun!

Playlist: Chuck Berry and Baseball

Chuck Berry

Happy birthday to The Prime Minister of Rock 'n' Roll, Chuck Berry! Today he is 85 years old! He is a musical legend in St. Louis and is still performing. He performed in game 5 of the playoffs singing the National Anthem. In the U-City Loop there's a 8 foot tall statue of him. He struck stardom with hits like "Johnny B Goode and "Roll Over Beethoven." Here's a list of his other songs. His musical influence is Muddy Waters and Nat "King" Cole. So in the middle of fan excitement, in honor of Chuck Berry and all the Cardinals milestones here's a tiny playlist of the baseball songs I like:

1. Jack Norworth -Take Me Out To The Ball Game
2. Queen - We Will Rock You / We Are the Champions
3. Woodrow Buddy Johnson - Did You See Jackie Robinson Hit That Ball

More songs!

Prepping for the World Series

Okay, to get you all caught up on where I last left off while this thing called life was happening, here's a Cardinals week in review:

Friday night (the 14th), the Budweiser Clydesdales were busy making special deliveries. They delivered beer to bars and restaurants in downtown St. Louis. It's always majestic seeing them, everyone always automatically take pictures! They are such a big part of St. Louis and baseball. The Clydesdales always open the season circling Busch Stadium. It's something people can remember for the rest of their life. They even made an appearance before game 5 outside of Busch Stadium!

Cardinals won game 5 (beating Milwaukee 7-1). Game 6 was also won (12-6) taking us to the World Series on the 19th at 7:05pm (CDT)! Go hometown advantage!

Cardinals celebrating while Brewers fans are silenced.

Of course that meant that Cardinals World Series gear would sell like hot cakes! Everyone wants the official locker room shirts seen on the Cardinals players during the locker room celebration. Workers at Picturesque Graphics, on Choteau in South City, cranked out shirts at a pace of about 3,000 an hour. Work on the shirts had begun as soon as the Cards won. The official Cardinals team store at Busch Stadium opened early at six in the morning yesterday.

Also yesterday, the city got ready for our close up by stenciling streets with logos and painting the field at the stadium. Though the crew had to race to cover freshly painted banners in front of the dugouts because of rain, they got the job done underneath tents. At this point they're pros with the Cardinals going to the World Series so many times!

And in other news, Rally Squirrel had been captured and released. The Wildlife Resource Center in Ballwin, says he is happily living in a hickory tree. He still gets around and is still up to his antics:

Enjoying some of St. Louis famous
 frozen custard from Ted Drewes!

Rally Squirrel?! Fan pic

Not to be out done, Torty the tortoise is still a fan favorite. He is the pet of Cardinals #21, Left Fielder Allen Craig. He's also a hit on twitter @tortycraig. As a matter of fact, being a big mouth on twitter was his big start back in September with over 6000 followers! He has merchandise benefiting the Animal Rescue Foundation.

Order here!

And now you're all caught up to today.

Vote YES For The Rally Squirrel!

Instead of us Cardinals fans being embarassed, we are actually embracing the Rally Squirrel(s). This squirrel ran right in front of home plate last night and the Cardinals won that game! He/She wasn't too much luck on Tuesday, but he/she redeemed itself. Yes, the last time a squirrel ran across the field during a Cardinals baseball game they won the World Series! The Rally Squirrel has been written about on Wikipedia. You can even contact Rally Squirrel via twitter @BuschSquirrel and facebook. He/She already has followers! He/She is also planning to pull a stunt for the next game too!

We should give him/her a real name. I'm thinking of a "Chuckles" or "Speedy". "Nutmeg" is nice since it's a combination of a boy and girl name. Or what about "Dart", seeing that he/she darted into the stands after dashing across the field? What would you name the Rally Squirrel, besides "Rally Squirrel"?

photo via stltoday.com

Mr. President VS. Baseball

The President was in St. Louis yesterday during the Cardinals vs. Phillies game. He even jokingly acknowledged it too! The politicians actually had to contemplate seeing the President or being @ the game. Umm..you're a politician, you better see Mr. President!  How many times do you get to see the President in person? How many chances do St. Louisians get to catch a  local Cards game? Come on, you make the call. Luckily, they made the right choice.

Above photos courtesy of CBS St. Louis

So, About Those Cards!



The almost improbable turned into almost probable for the Cards. The St. Louis Cardinals pulled off one of the greatest comebacks in baseball history! Not since 1964 has the Cards come from such a deficit in the standings and salvaged themselves on the final day. Chris Carpenter was on FIRE and they got five hits within the first inning alone. The Cardinals did their part to get into the playoffs with an 8-0 win over Houston on Wednesday! Now Cardinal Nation, we wait..

And as the Braves lost to the Philadelphia Phillies:

Fans CELEBRATE!

Team CELEBRATION!

Do you have any baseball superstitions or rituals? Or is your option, 'not telling, or I'd have to kill ya.'?



It's out of here folks!