In a departure from past years,
when schedules were not available until November and season tickets were not yet
on sale, Roger Dean Stadium in Jupiter, Florida has announced the St. Louis
Cardinals’ tentative 2010 spring training slate of games and is taking season
ticket orders.
The defending National League
Central Division champions will play a schedule of 30 spring contests, of which
28 will be held in Florida. The Grapefruit League portion of the
schedule begins on March 4 and runs though April 1, a period which includes two
off-days and one split squad date.
The Cardinals conclude their
exhibition schedule with what may be their greatest two-day climate shift ever.
Upon after leaving Florida, the club will hop a
flight to Minnesota. There, they will play the Twins in
a pair of games christening the new outdoor Target Field in chilly downtown
Minneapolis on
April 2 and 3.
The Cardinals will then
participate in the traditional NL opener in Cincinnati on Monday, April 5, playing four
games in three different states over just the initial five days of
April.
Of their 28 Florida spring contests,
the Cardinals are scheduled to play 17 at Roger Dean, of which they are the home
team in 14. Their Jupiter co-habitants, the Florida Marlins, are designated as
the home club in the other three. Other than which club bats first and which
wears whites, you’d be hard pressed to tell the
difference.
Four home games of note are the
Boston Red Sox on March 12, the Houston Astros on March 13, the Atlanta Braves
on March 18 and the Minnesota Twins on March 29. Two popular spring opponents in
2009, the 2008 World Series combatants Philadelphia Phillies and Tampa Bay Rays,
are both off the Cardinals spring schedule in 2010.
| Day |
Date |
Home |
Visitor |
Time (ET) |
| Thursday |
4-Mar |
Mets |
Cardinals |
1:10 |
| Friday |
5-Mar |
Cardinals |
Mets |
1:05 |
| Saturday |
6-Mar |
Marlins |
Cardinals |
1:05 |
| Sunday |
7-Mar |
Cardinals |
Marlins |
1:05 |
| Monday |
8-Mar |
Red Sox |
Cardinals |
1:05 |
| Tuesday |
9-Mar |
Twins |
Cardinals |
1:05 |
| Wednesday |
10-Mar |
Cardinals |
Nationals |
1:05 |
| Thursday |
11-Mar |
Marlins |
Cardinals |
1:05 |
| Friday |
12-Mar |
Cardinals |
Red Sox |
1:05 |
| Saturday |
13-Mar |
Cardinals |
Astros |
1:05 |
| Sunday |
14-Mar |
Nationals |
Cardinals |
1:05 |
| Monday |
15-Mar |
Mets |
Cardinals |
1:10 |
| Tuesday |
16-Mar |
Cardinals |
Nationals |
1:05 |
| Wednesday |
17-Mar |
open |
|
|
| Thursday |
18-Mar |
Cardinals |
Braves |
1:05 |
| Friday |
19-Mar |
Marlins |
Cardinals# |
1:05 |
|
|
Nationals |
Cardinals# |
7:05 |
| Saturday |
20-Mar |
Cardinals |
Mets |
1:05 |
| Sunday |
21-Mar |
Braves |
Cardinals |
1:05 |
| Monday |
22-Mar |
Astros |
Cardinals |
1:05 |
| Tuesday |
23-Mar |
open |
|
|
| Wednesday |
24-Mar |
Cardinals |
Orioles |
1:05 |
| Thursday |
25-Mar |
Cardinals |
Mets |
1:05 |
| Friday |
26-Mar |
Nationals |
Cardinals |
1:05 |
| Saturday |
27-Mar |
Cardinals |
Marlins |
1:05 |
| Sunday |
28-Mar |
Mets |
Cardinals |
1:10 |
| Monday |
29-Mar |
Cardinals |
Twins |
1:05 |
| Tuesday |
30-Mar |
Mets |
Cardinals |
1:10 |
| Wednesday |
31-Mar |
Cardinals |
Nationals |
1:05 |
| Thursday |
1-Apr |
Cardinals |
Marlins |
11:05 |
| Friday |
2-Apr |
Twins* |
Cardinals |
5:10 (CT) |
| Saturday |
3-Apr |
Twins* |
Cardinals |
1:10 (CT) |
|
|
|
|
|
| # split squad |
|
|
|
|
| * in Minneapolis |
|
|
|
|
| Jupiter
games |
|
|
|
|
In terms of total match-ups, not
surprisingly the teams that train nearby will play the Cardinals most often. The
New York Mets, 33 miles away in Port St. Lucie, are the scheduled opponent seven
times. That is one more than the Florida Marlins, who will face the Cardinals
six times next spring and share the Roger Dean complex with them.
Having moved their spring camp
away from Ft.
Lauderdale, the Baltimore
Orioles play the Cardinals just once after having met them eight times last
spring. The Washington Nationals, the next nearest team at 110 miles away in Viera, will
battle the Cardinals in six spring contests.
| Opponent |
Home |
Away |
Total |
| Mets |
3 |
4 |
7 |
| Marlins |
3 |
3 (Jupiter) |
6 |
| Nationals |
3 |
3 |
6 |
| Twins |
1 |
3 (2 Mpls) |
4 |
| Astros |
1 |
1 |
2 |
| Braves |
1 |
1 |
2 |
| Red Sox |
1 |
1 |
2 |
| Orioles |
1 |
0 |
1 |
| Total |
14 |
16 |
30 |
Spring “season” tickets are now on
sale via the Roger Dean
Stadium box office. There is also information posted on four and six-game
plans. Single-game seats are not yet on sale, but are traditionally made
available in early January.
Stay tuned for more information on
tickets as well as spring radio and television broadcast
schedules.
Brian
Walton can be reached via email at brian@thecardinalnationblog.com.
Also catch his Cardinals commentary daily at The Cardinal Nation
blog.
© 2009
stlcardinals.scout.com. All rights
reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.