AUTHOR: erich job TITLE: The History of the St.Louis Cardinals DATE: 6:47:00 PM ----- BODY:

Hello heaters,the other day we explored the history of Busch Stadium. Today we will look at the history of the St.Louis Cardinals entire history. The Cardinals were founded in 1882,as part of the American Association as the St.Louis Brown Stockings. The Brown Stockings played at Sportsman's Park 1882 through 1892. The Brown Stocking made an immediate impact,winning four straight League Penants from 1885 through 1888,winning the American Association's version of the World Series in 1885,and 1886 against The Chicago Cubs, [they were the Chicago White Stocking until 1886]which started they're long lasting rivalry which continues today. After the American Association went bankrupt in 1892,the Brown Stockings moved to the National League. In 1892 Sportsman's Park was renovated and was now named Sportsman's Park II. In 1899 the team changed their name to the Perfectos. The Perfectos moved into League Park,also in 1899. In 1900 the team changed their named to the Cardinals,which they are known as today. From 1902 through 1954,the American League's St.Louis Browns also played in St.Louis until moving to Baltimore in 1954. Their home field was Robinson Park. In 1920,the Cardinals were bought by former New York business executive,Sam Breadon. Breadon named Branch Rickey,a well known baseball executive who would go on to be a major part of MLB's Color Barrier later in his career as his General Manager.Breadon sold the teams current field,Cardinal Field,and moved them to Sportsman's Park III. Breadon used the money from Cardinal Field to invest in their farm system. In 1922 Second Baseman Rogers Hornsby won the Triple Crown award by hitting .401,with forty two home runs,and 152 runs batted in. Hornsby would again win the Triple Crown in 1925, hitting .393,with thirty three home runs,and 143 runs batted in. In 1926 the Cardinals won their first National League penants,and went on to beat the New York Yankees in the World Series,a defeat which the Yankees would avenge two years later by sweeping them.The Cardinals started off the 1930's in dominating fasion by making it to the World Series in 1930,and 1931,winning in 1931. In 1934, the team earned the nickname "Gashouse Gang" due to their intimidating composure. The Caridnals would go on to win the World Series over the Detroit Tigers, led by Dizzy Dean,who is the last National Legue Pitcher to win thirty games. In 1937, Left Fielder Joe Medwick became the last National Legue hitter to win the Triple Crown, hitting .374,with thirty one home runs, and 154 runs batted in. The Cardinals continued to dominate the National League in the 1940's, with World Series wins in 1942,1944,and 1946,led by Stan "the man" Musial. After 1946,the Cardinals suffered a slight slump. In 1942, General Manager Branch Rickey left to become General Manager of the Dodgers.In 1953, the team was bough by the world famous Anheuser-Busch Brewery,and August "Gussy" Busch became team president.The Cardinals would return to domination in the 1960's. In 1964, the Cardinals traded pitcher Ernie Borglio,and two other players to the Chicago Cubs for Outfielder Lou Brock,and two other players. In St.Louis the trade became known as "Brock for Brogilo".The Cardinals beat the Yankees in the 1964 World Series,led by Lou Brock,and twenty game winner Bob Gibson. The World Series victory proved that the Cardinals could go on after the retirement of Stan Musial in 1963.In 1966,the team moved into Busch Memorial Stadium,where they would host the all-star game that year. The Cardinals again won the World Series in 1967,defeating the Boston Red Sox. Bob Gibson led the way,pitching three complete games in the series. Gibson's 1967 ERA was a mind boggling 1.12,which is still a live ball era record.In 1968 the Cardinals reached the World Series again, behind Bob Gibson's three complete games,to go a long with thirty five strikeouts,including seventeen strikeouts in game one. The Cardinals lost game seven,due to a crucial error by Cardinals Outfielder Curt Flood. In 1970,Bob Gibson won his second. In 1971,Joe Torre won the National League MVP. The Cardinals did not win a penant in the 1970's. The Cardinals finished 1981 with a 30-20 record. [the season was shortened due to a player strike] In 1982,The Cardinals acquired Shortstop Ozzie Smith from the Padres in exchange for Garry Templeton. Ozzie Smith would go on to win thirteen Gold Glove awards. The acquisition of "The Wizard" also led to the acquisition of a new form of ball playing,known as Whiteyball,named after Cardinals Manager Whitey Herzog. The Cardinals would go on to win the World Series in 1982,and 1985. They reached the Series in 1987,but lost to the Minnesota Twins. The Cardinals hit another brief digression in the early 1990's. In 1990,long time Manager Whitey Herzog [1980-1990] was replaced by former Braves,and Mets Manager Joe Torre. The Cardinals had several winning seasons under Torre,but failed to reach the post season. In 1996,the Cardinals were purchased by investor William DeWitt Jr. DeWitt's first two acts as owner were to move the team to a new park, [Busch Stadium II] and hire legendary Oakland A's manager Tony LaRussa to replace Joe Torre. Under LaRussa,the Cardinals would go on to win the NLDS,however they fell short in the NLCS,losing to the Atlanta Braves in seven games. 1998 was perhaps the most memorable year in Team history,as Mark McGwire broke Roger Maris's single season home run record by hitting seventy home runs. Despite McGwire's record,the Cardinals finished the season with a record of 83-79,and did not make the playoffs. For the Cardinals,the new milenium meant a new opportunity. Led by their new superstar,Albet Pujols,the Cardinals won Division titles in six out of seven seasons from 2000 through 2007. In 2004,the Cardinals finished with a record of 105-57.Despite their impressive regular season record,and dominance in the post season,the Cardinals were swept by the Boston Red Sox in the World Series. In 2005,the Cardinals won 100 games,but lost to the Houston Astros in the NLCS. In 2006, the Cardinals finished with just eighty three wins,but that was enough for them to win a Wild Card berth. The Cardinals went on to become the first Wild Card team to win the World Series. On August,29th,209 the Cardinals won their 10,000th game,beating the San Diego Padres.The Cardinals would go on to the NLDS,only to lose to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Cardinals have certainly had an illustrious history since it's inception in 1882. With current name stays such as Albert Pujols,Yadier Molina,Kyle McClellan,and Jason Motte,the Cardinals seem destined to keep their winning tradition alive in the future.

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