Apparently, other television networks across the Major League Baseball landscape – whether regional or national – are not particularly interested in seeing the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals this spring. In spring training broadcast schedules posted at MLB.com, only two of the Cardinals’ eight spring opponents will be televising even one Florida contest with St...

Over on the main site, TheCardinalNation.com, I have been running a four-part series of articles for subscribers recapping remarks from the president of the St. Louis Cardinals, Bill DeWitt III, as they relate to various aspects of the team’s finances. It is not surprising that the son of the club’s principal owner and chairman totes a Harvard MBA in his educational kit bag....

As 2011 became 2012, I predicted that catcher Yadier Molina’s contract situation will be the second-biggest story of the New Year for the St. Louis Cardinals, behind Adam Wainwright’s comeback from elbow surgery. Based on early returns, I may have had the two reversed. Since that article appeared, Molina ducked the Cardinals Winter Warm-Up fan festival for the second consecutive...

How in the world did Dave LaPoint and Ryde Rodriguez end up together? Recently, I posted a series of photos and a recap of the St. Louis Cardinals Legends Camp, held in Jupiter, Fla. two weeks ago. One of the 21 former Cardinals that came back together for fun with each other and with the fans who paid for the opportunity to take the field with them was LaPoint. The now-52-year...

Yesterday, I wrote about the announcement from The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum that former St. Louis Cardinals left-handed reliever Rheal Cormier will be among their 2012 inductees. That led to a discussion among some of the readers here as to the best Cardinal ever born in the land up North. Though the players competed in many different eras and of course played different...

The Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum announced its 2012 inductees on Tuesday morning. Included is former St. Louis Cardinals left-handed reliever Rheal Cormier. Other members of the Class of 2012 are former Montreal Expos star Rusty Staub, known as “Le Grand Orange” due to his red (orange) hair, former MLB pitcher and current Milwaukee Brewers general manager Doug Melvin...

The William J. Clinton Presidential Library and Museum is planning a new exhibit called “Play Ball! The St. Louis Cardinals.” The announcement was made via their Twitter feed and Facebook page. The opening date has not yet been announced, but the current exhibit will be closing on February 12. Though there are no documented reports of the 42nd President of the United States attending...

Appalachian League champions on the diamond the past two seasons, the Johnson City Cardinals’ home field conditions are not up to those high standards. Shrinking city budgets meant needed repairs have piled up over the last decade. The club’s owner and parent, the St. Louis Cardinals, has given the facility “continued poor marks,” reports the Johnson City Press. Johnson City...

This morning, I read an article in the Chicago Sun-Times that quoted deposed Cubs skipper Mike Quade on the major challenge in his former job. Despite having managed 17 years in the minors, he was still not completely prepared for one element of his Major League assignment – dealing with the media multiple times each and every day all season long. You can read the details, but...

Hall of Famer Red Schoendienst has done it all for the St. Louis Cardinals – All-Star player, World Champion manager and now sage adviser to the scores who followed. Making his St. Louis debut in 1945, the switch-hitting second baseman played 15 seasons with the Cardinals, including in the 1946 World Series. The 10-time National League All-Star also appeared in two more Series...

As we have entered the final few weeks before the long winter ends and spring training begins, soon we will have real on-the-field baseball news about which to report. St. Louis Cardinals pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report to Jupiter, Fla. on February 18 and conduct their first workout on February 19. The remainder of the players are expected to report by February 23 with...

In a brilliant marketing move, The Topps Company, Inc. included in their new baseball card sets for 2012 a very unique card. It features the Rally Squirrel, famous for having briefly interrupted play during a Skip Schumaker at-bat in game 4 of the National League Division Series at Busch Stadium on October 5. The card is labeled as Schumaker’s, but only a small part of the player’s...

When the new labor agreement between Major League Baseball players and management was announced amid great fanfare in November, a few loose ends yet remained to be tied down later. One was the subject of the expansion of post-season play. For the first time since 1995, a change will be made to the playoff format. Starting no later than 2013, a second Wild Card will be added in each...

As regular readers know, I have been a vocal critic of the St. Louis Cardinals for closing their museum back in 2008 and keeping it closed indefinitely. Since it may be some time (Phase 1 of Ballpark Village) until it re-opens, the club has invested in a virtual museum experience. The new website, www.cardinals.com/museum, has been launched today, January 30, with the goal of highlighting...

St. Louis Cardinals 2005 supplemental first round draft pick Mark McCormick tried to reach his professional dream of reaching the major leagues but had to abandon his quest due to injuries. After five seasons of trying, the former Baylor star, taken 46th overall in 2005, was released by the Cardinals in December 2009. The right-hander had spent most of the interim period either injured...

As many National League fans already know, right-handed pitcher Roy Oswalt has worn the number 44 for his entire big-league career, which began with 9 ½ stellar seasons with the Houston Astros before a 2010 deadline trade to the Philadelphia Phillies. If rumors that the 36-year-old is on the verge of signing with the St. Louis Cardinals for 2012 come to reality, the question will...

Last week, we ran a poll to consider the wide variety of salary options the St. Louis Cardinals might have in offering an extension to catcher Yadier Molina, on the path toward becoming a free agent for the first time following the 2012 season. To keep that survey manageable, the dollar amounts and years were split into separate questions. That made it difficult to bring the two...

One version of the “insiders story” of Albert Pujols’ signing with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim has already been told – from the perspective of his agent, Danny Lozano – in a December 8 article by Bob Nightengale of USAToday. Now we hear it from the angle of the Angels, primarily general manager Jerry Dipoto. That story is entitled “How to Land the Big One, the...

The recent news of the falsified identity and age of another player from the Dominican Republic, the Cleveland Indians pitcher formerly known as Fausto Carmona, has baseball-watchers buzzing. Carmona is now/back-to-being Roberto Hernandez Heredia, age 31 instead of 28. He is certainly neither the first nor probably the last player to be outed this way. Carmona/Heredia was arrested...

With the 2012 spring training camp invitations issued, it is time for another refresh of the St. Louis Cardinals system roster matrix. This version reflects the changes made until 2012 spring training concludes and the regular season and extended spring training get underway. The previous matrix reflects the rosters as they evolved from the end of 2011 play until spring training...

Already the recipient of the 2011 National League Championship Series and World Series Most Valuable Player Awards, St. Louis Cardinals third baseman David Freese added another such recognition Saturday night in New York. The New York chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) bestowed The Babe Ruth Award upon Freese. The award is given annually to the Major...

Last weekend during Winter Warm-Up, I listened to several media members quiz various St. Louis Cardinals players as to who they felt would become the new “face of the franchise” now that Albert Pujols (and Tony La Russa) have departed. (In one artificial measure, Pujols is the only person to appear on the cover of  the Cardinals Media Guide in each of the last three years....

As many St. Louis Cardinals fans know, Yadier Molina skipped the team’s Winter Warm-Up fan festival last weekend. After a discussion between club general manager John Mozeliak and the catcher’s agent, Molina will be making a contribution to the Cardinals Care charity in lieu of his attendance. The GM explained his catcher does not like the crowds and autograph signings. This...

St. Louis Cardinals 2012 Spring Training single game tickets go on sale to the public today, Saturday, January 21, 2012 at 9 A.M. CT / 10 A.M. ET. Fans in the Palm Beach area can select their seats at the Roger Dean Stadium Fun Fest going on at the stadium from 10 A.M. to 2 P.M. today. Others can purchase tickets online from the Cardinals official website. Here is the link to the...

In yesterday’s post, we looked at some of the factors surrounding the upcoming free agency of St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina. In a poll at the conclusion of the article, I gave readers several voting options to specify what they think the Cardinals should do. Over 80 percent are in favor of the club trying to work out a deal into the fall. The logical follow-on question...