PLAY BALL!

 

It's opening weekend of the baseball season in the U.S. When I was young, I was interested in all kinds of sports, like most American boys. Over time, I have become bored with most of it, particularly our version of football, which I despise for its gratuitous violence and crass spectacle. There is still a soft spot, though, for baseball. I spent a bunch of my youth in the cheap seats in Yankee Stadium (two versions back). Thursday was opening day for our beloved Cardinals, who squeezed out a come-from-behind 9 - 7 victory over Tampa Bay.

We are going to try to get to the No Kings rally today with my rollator, camera and help from Mrs. C. 

           

PLAY BALL

Going back a couple of weeks. On the day we went downtown to the the reopened Old Courthouse, Mrs. C and I took a lunch break on the top floor restaurant of a high rise hotel. It is called the Hilton At The Ballpark for this reason. There was a day game in progress, sparsely attended on a Wednesday when school was still in session. I like baseball. It is a sport that lacks the crass violence of American football and, unlike hockey, basketball and soccer, doesn’t remind me of Brownian motion.                     

THEY LOVE BASEBALL IN JAPAN

The Japanese Society of St. Louis had a table at Earth Day. My granddaughter, of course, was attracted by the anime trinkets. The woman representing the society was wearing a stunning kimono, covered with emblems of our mediocre baseball team. Nobody says konichiwa! when you enter its stadium.                       

MADELEINE MONDAY

At the Cardinals baseball game. She calls these things stuffies and - I can’t be sure - she may have over a hundred. The big one in the middle is the Cardinals’ mascot, known as Fredbird. The one on her right was the give-away at the game. The one on her left was made by one of the nurses when her mother was hospitalized last year.              

TAKE ME OUT TO THE BALL GAME

 

I don’t have much interest in sports. The violence and exploitation of American football horrify me. But I do have a soft spot for baseball. It’s what I grew up with, when a kid could get a cheap seat at Yankee Stadium on the day of the game for what was in a kid’s pocket. Now I support the St Louis Cardinals. They are having a mediocre year, after a terrible one last season. We rarely attend.

But we got tickets for last Sunday. They had a promotion giving kids a free Cardinals teddy bear. My granddaughter, Ellie, who has the largest collection of stuffed animals and things (a stuffed cup of bubble tea!) in Missouri coveted yet another one. The Cardinals got smacked around but the day was beautiful.

I said I’m not much for sports but we’ve been to a couple of first division soccer/football matches in Buenos Aires, and that was a lot of fun.               

IT WILL BE OUR LITTLE SECRET

Another odd wall painting in Cantado Mexican restaurant. The women's shirts resemble Cardinals baseball uniforms, appropriate since the stadium is across the street. I'm not sure what the number 13 on the earring means, other that it was the uniform number of a popular player who retired a couple of years ago. The place serves excellent margaritas in jars such as the one pictured.

The woman on the left seems to be whispering something. Does she have inside information about the team's chances this year with the season starting later this month? The Cardinals finished last in 2023 so they can't get any worse.        

THREE LETTERS

A sculpture in the plaza opposite the baseball stadium, next to the big cards shown yesterday. These letters, in red with white piping and in this typeface, have been part of the Cardinals logo for as long as records exist. STL has been adopted as the city and region's abbreviation for ages. It's the airport code. There are multitudes of websites that use this or that-STL to create a unique URL.  Nobody here misses the point.                

 

THE END OF THE SEASON AND TWO GREAT CAREERS

We are three days from the end of the Major League Baseball season. Our beloved St. Louis Cardinals have won their division (there are six) and will proceed into the complex system of playoffs.

Two of the team's all-time greats are retiring at the end of the season. Albert Pujols has been one of the greatest hitters in the history of the game. He played here for 11 seasons, went to California for the big bucks where his production tailed off with age. He came back here for one final season and, at age 42, is tearing up the field. He will finish the season fourth on the all time home run list, based on records going back to the late 19th Century. Yadier Molina, Yadi to the fans, has played here for 18 years at one of the most physically demanding positions in sports. By general acclaim, he is one of the greatest defensive players ever to put on the catcher's armor. Both are headed to the baseball Hall of Fame after the minimum waiting period.

The team set up these boards in a plaza across from the stadium for the fans to leave personal notes and memories. I got there just as the line was forming on Friday. They will be presented to the players today.                    

MADELEINE MONDAY

Haven't had the kid on for a while, although I wish it were under better circumstances. Except for baseball, I have little interest in sports. It was a childhood pleasure. We rarely go to games because it's so damn expensive but I took the family Saturday night for the next-to-last game of the season. A major drawback for all of us is the sound technology. The owners whip up the crowd with ear-splitting, thumping pop music we often don't recognize. (I prefer unpopular music.) It's past the point of painful and about drove Ellie mad.

When I was a boy I could get a general admission ticket at Yankee Stadium for what was in a kid's pocket. Hard to believe now, but there were once cheap tickets at Yankee Stadium. The only sounds were cheering and an organ. Seems blissful by today's standards.        

CITY DAILY PHOTO OCTOBER THEME DAY - WINNERS

It's the first of the month and time for City Daily Photo's monthly theme day. This time the topic is Winners. Since I've been away for a while I went back into the archives and found this picture from St. Louis' Busch Stadium. Our local heroes, the baseball Cardinals, have a tradition of winning and have captured more championships than any team except the New York Yankees. They have also won 20 of their last 22 games as they head into the playoffs.            

THE RED ARMY

The crowd waits to enter the baseball stadium, gathered around the statue of Stan Musial. He has been deified as The Greatest Cardinal of Them All. The statue has been criticized for its misshapen proportions. The fans don't care. It's an object of veneration.         

PLAY BALL

Change of plan. Yesterday was the home opening game for our baseball team, the much-loved Cardinals. I needed some exercise and took a walk from my office to the stadium and back, trolling for images. I was not disappointed.

Although the team only sold tickets for one-quarter of the seats, there was a big crowd in the plaza and entertainment area opposite the stadium (with maybe one in ten  wearing masks). These two old fans were dressed for the occasion. Love the shoes. And by the way, the home town heroes won so all is well. For today.         

ALMOST THAT TIME OF YEAR

It has felt like spring in The Lou lately, and spring brings a long-established activity. I've gone sour on professional sports over time, what with the subject turning mostly to money and marketing. However, I still have a soft spot for baseball. Memories of happy days in the uppermost rows of Yankee Stadium, when a kid could get in for what was in a kid's pocket. (No more!) My home city had deep baseball traditions and my adopted city does, too. No, I rarely go to games - the prices are extortionate. But once in a while I'll put on my red hat . . .

There is a pretty big real estate development across from Busch Stadium (more revenue, naturally), Ballpark Village, that has this little plaza laid out like a diamond. The inscription on these stairs is new this year. Fans stand and sing this song in the middle of the 7th inning game after game. It feels good: let me root, root, root for the Cardinals. If they don't win it's a shame.          

FLY LIKE THE WIND

I mentioned in yesterday's post that another Cardinal great, Lou Brock, died Saturday at the age of 81. Although he was an exceptional hitter (the statue shows the moment he made his 3,000th base hit, something quite extraordinary), his great fame was from his speed and deceptiveness as a base runner. He set what was at the time the Major League record for stolen bases. It still remains the National League record. He had such skill at deceiving pitchers and such sudden speed that he was without peer.

These pages have noted before that the Cardinals are St. Louis' state religion. When Mrs. C and I went by here yesterday afternoon we found a growing mound of flowers and tributes. I expect it to grow.            

 

TODAY'S STARTING LINEUP IS - NOBODY

Helicopter view down into Busch Stadium, where the St. Louis Cardinals play. In a normal year, we would be a third of the way through the season. Something may start in July before empty stadiums. The leagues and divisions may be re-arranged so that teams only play others closest to them, minimizing travel. How the players will be protected on the field, in the dugout and in the locker room is uncertain. It is all being negotiated between the owners and players. I guess they will make what money they can from TV and the Internet.

Although I'm pretty put off by the crass commercialization of professional sports I still like baseball. I played it a a boy and spent happy hours in the cheap seats in Yankee Stadium (there used to be some). What did SImon and Garfunkle sing? Where have you gone Joe DiMaggio, our  nation turns its lonely eyes to you...                   

STL DPB ON THE ROAD - CARDINALS FANS ARE EVERYWHERE

Back in the farmers market in Liberia, Costa Rica. I did not notice until I started editing photos that this man was wearing a St. Louis Cardinals baseball cap. As we walked by, I remember my eye being drawn to his shirt - it was in English and I tried to read it. Had I been more observant, I would have tried to engage him in my bad Spanish.

As it happened, one of the Cardinals' all time great players, Ozzie Smith, was on our flight from Miami to St. Louis Friday night. Ellie was wearing a bright red Cardinals tee shirt and we encouraged her to go shake his hand in the boarding area. She hid behind mom.         

MADELEINE MONDAY

 

The kid had a busy weekend. On Friday night Ellie and mom went to the Cardinals baseball game. It was a chilly evening but she didn't care. Close game but the Cards lost to the New York Mets. Although it was late Ellie insisted on staying to the very end.

On Saturday her mom and I took her to the City Museum. That boy on the right has a "it's my turn" scowl. The visit ended with the ever-popular ball pit. They have a separate area for children six and under. Good thing. Some of the big kids get pretty rough.            

Go Cards!

Graffiti that was out of sight from the street, on the back of a commercial building near the baseball stadium. The Cardinals may be the local state religion but they are having a very mediocre year. I might watch them on television but I wouldn't consider going to a game in this heat with the prices they charge.        

Madeleine Monday (Baby It's Cold Outside)

The area of the baseball stadium we were in Saturday has an indoor food area and lounge called the Redbird Club. Anyone can be a member of this club who is willing to pay something extra for a ticket. (Groucho Marx: I don't care to belong to any club that will have me as a member.) Anyway, given the low temperatures, I'm glad we ponied up. In fact, we hid out there for much of the game, watching the action on TV screens.

Major League baseball frequently has giveaways for people attending a game. All the tchotchkes have corporate sponsors. This one had bobble heads (insanely popular here) of former Cardinal greats riding in little Ford convertibles. You got one at random on entry. Ellie was quite satisfied with Lou Brock and his clone and had to share her thoughts with her mother.     

Commercial District

One of the discouraging things about professional sports (worldwide, I assume) is the intense commercialization. Fans cannot escape marketing at every turn. It is annoying, distracting from the game. Some is just a logo, some is simply absurd. It's hard to see with low contrast, but the middle of the Coca Cola ad has the slogan "taste the feeling." Are they slipping LSD into the beverage?