A pre-game ceremony
honoring the reigning N.L. Central Division Champions, 2010 Hall of Fame
Inductee Whitey Herzog and the 25th anniversary of the ’85 Cardinals’ N.L.
Championship will punctuate a day of activities celebrating the annual return of
baseball to St. Louis on Monday, April 12th. The Cardinals
will take on the Houston Astros in a 3:15 p.m. game. The Cardinals begin a new
decade of play at Busch after completing one of the most successful decades in
franchise history. Following is a schedule of official activities, some fun
franchise facts and information to help baseballs’ best fans enjoy what has
become an unofficial holiday for Cardinals Nation.
Schedule
11:00 a.m. – 2 p.m.
Cardinals Official Opening Day Pre-Game Pep Rally, sponsored by Hardee’s:
The
Cardinals will host a pre-game pep rally located in the Ballpark Village Lot,
located directly across from Busch Stadium, at the corner of Clark Street and
South Broadway. Local 80s cover band Trixie Delight will perform from 11.30 a.m.
to 1.30 p.m.
Throughout the
performance, they will be joined on-stage Cardinals Alumni, Fredbird and Team
Fredbird. Fans in attendance will have the opportunity to win tickets to Opening
Day and receive a free gameday tattoo and a collectible Opening Day Pennant,
while supplies last. Other sponsors in attendance will include Bad Boy Mowers,
The Drunken Fish, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, the Missouri Secretary of State’s
Office, The Muny and Scotts.
1:15 p.m. Gates open
Busch Magnet
Schedule Day: All fans ages 21 and
over will receive a magnet with the 2010 Cardinals schedule, compliments of
Busch Beer.
2:30 p.m. Pre-game ceremonies begin with an
appearance by the famed Budweiser Clydesdales.
Cardinals Hall-of-Famers, 2010 HOF
Inductee Whitey Herzog and the 2010 team will be introduced via a Ford
Motorcade around the warning track.
Introduce several members of the
1985 National League Champion Cardinals including Jack Clark, Ken Dayley,
Rick Horton, Andy Van Slyke and others.
American Bald Eagle flight,
courtesy of the World Bird Sanctuary of St. Louis Color Guard – 375th Scott Air Force Base Honor Guard
A moment of silence to honor
former Cardinals owner Nick Kladis and former Cardinals President &
Chief Executive Officer Fred Kuhlmann
Neal E. Boyd, 2007 winner of America’s Got Talent, will sing the
Star-Spangled Banner.
Air Force Flyover of A-10
Thunderbolts
Ceremonial First Pitch – Whitey
Herzog
3:15 p.m. Game Time
Watching on TV
Fans can watch the game and
pre-game ceremony in High Definition on FS-Midwest.
Radio Coverage
Fans can tune into KTRS (550
AM) or one of the 117 stations in the Cardinals Radio Network
stations to hear Mike Shannon & John Rooney call the
game.
Getting to the Game / Ramp
Closures on I-64
The Missouri Department of
Transportation reminds fans that the eastbound Interstate 64 exit ramp at
11th
Street is closed for bridge rehabilitation work. The
exit ramp will remain closed until approximately June of this year. Fans coming
from the west can detour to the Last Missouri Exit (Sixth Street).
The westbound Interstate 64 exit
ramp at Ninth
Street remains closed until approximately June 2010
for bridge rehabilitation work. Fans driving in from Illinois can detour at
Memorial
Drive or at 2100 Market Street.
Alternative Transportation
Reminder
Metro Link is a convenient
alternative to driving, allowing fans to avoid the cost of parking and game day
traffic.
Ballpark Improvements
As the Cardinals begin their fifth
season of play in the new Busch Stadium, a number of improvements have been made
during the off-season.
The
Cardinals have enclosed and upgraded the Cardinals Authentics store in
the Ford Plaza area of the ballpark and have added a canopy
roof over the Ford Plaza stage.
Brick
wainscoting has been added to the suite level of the ballpark.
Historic logo graphics have been
added to the stadium’s large main stairwells.
Many
areas of the ballpark have been freshly painted in anticipation of the 2010
season.
New for the 2010 Season
Credit
and debit cards are now accepted at all concession stands, including portables,
as the team’s concessionaire, Deleware North Companies Sportservice, has
upgraded the stadium’s point of sale system.
The
Cardinals have launched Cards Cash, a convenient affordable value that
allows fans to store money on a game ticket bar code to be used for purchases
throughout the ballpark. (Fans can add $12 Cards Cash to their ticket for
just $10)
The
team’s Party Suites now include a full-catered buffet with the price of a
ticket. The catered suites include Hunter Hot Dogs, BBQ beef, chicken
breasts, nachos, baked beans, beer and soda at no additional cost.
From a
retail perspective, fans will find more souvenir items priced under
$12, as well as a new NIKE/Haddad children’s kiosk on the
concourse near Ford Plaza, a new dynamic customized jersey-making
experience at Fans’ Nest at Broadway and the chance to purchase a
professional quality photo of their outing at Busch Stadium with FanFoto
located adjacent to the US Cellular Family Pavilion.
On the
culinary front, fans will find the concessions menu infused with a variety of
St. Louis-inspired creations, including: hand-rolled Mama
Toscano’s Toasted Ravioli (at Dizzy’s Diner locations); the
first-ever “St
Louis BBQ Bacon Dog,”(in the Redbird Club);
Waffles Supreme and Cherokee Street Tacos (Gate 1).
The
team is also launching a Fan Texting System to give fans a
discreet, instant way to alert stadium personnel of guest services issues by
sending a quick text message. For Security and Guest Services concerns fans
should text keyword: “STLCARDS” + issue and location to 69050.
Coming
April 26th, 2K Sports in the US Cellular Family Pavilion,
an interactive area for fans complete with Xbox gaming consoles with
“MLB2K10”
A Decade of Excellence (2000 –
2009)
Monday’s game against the Houston
Astros not only marks the first home game of the 2010-season, it will also be
the first home game of a new decade of Cardinals baseball in downtown St. Louis. The last decade
was one of the most successful in franchise history -- both on and off the
playing field:
10th
World Series Championship
2
National League Pennants
7
National League Central Division Titles
Led the
N.L. with 913 victories
Led the
N.L. with 33 postseason wins
Drew
over 32 million fans to downtown St.
Louis
Opened
new Busch Stadium in 2006
Hosted
the 2009 All-Star Game
3 N.L.
MVP Awards for Albert Pujols
2001
N.L. Rookie of the Year (Albert Pujols)
2005
N.L. Cy Young Award (Chris Carpenter)
31 N.L.
All-Stars
21
Rawlings Gold Glove Awards
12
Louisville
Silver Slugger Awards
Winningest Manager in Cardinals
History (Tony LaRussa)
Four
former Cardinals inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown
(Ozzie Smith 2002; Dennis Eckersley 2004; Bruce Sutter 2006; Billy Southworth
2008)
Ceremonial first pitches from two
United
States Presidents (President George W. Bush in
2004; President Barack Obama in 2009)
Some Fun
Franchise Facts
The
Cardinals were founded in 1882 as an American Association Team called the
St.
Louis Brown Stockings.
In
1892, the team moved to the National League and changed the team name to the
St. Louis Browns. In 1899, the name was changed to the Perfectos,
and in 1900, the name was changed to its existing title, the St. Louis
Cardinals.
From
1902-1954, an American League Team called the St. Louis Browns also
played in St.
Louis. In 1954, they moved to Baltimore and became the
Baltimore Orioles.
The
Cardinals have won over 9,200 games, 10 World Series Championships, 17 National
League Pennants, 3 National League Eastern Division Titles, and 8 National
League Central Division Titles.
There
are over 40 former Cardinal players and managers enshrined in the National
Baseball Hall of Fame Museum in Cooperstown, New
York.
The
Cardinals bring more than 3 million fans downtown each year, with more than a
million coming from outside of the state of Missouri.
In
2009, the Cardinals drew 3.343 million fans, with 49 sellout games – ranking 4th
in MLB in terms of ticket sales
Over
90% of fans attending Cardinals games come from outside of the City of St. Louis.
There
are approximately 3,000 day-of-game employees at Busch Stadium.
The St.
Louis Regional Chamber and Growth Association (RCGA) estimates that the economic
impact of the 2010 Cardinals’ season on the St. Louis region will exceed $306.2 million,
with an estimated $151.9 million this year in direct impact and $154.3 million
in in-direct regional economic activity.
In
2009, the Cardinals had 36 Promotional Giveaways, ranging from magnet schedules
and wall calendars to bats, hats, pennants and bobbleheads.
In
2009, the St. Louis Cardinals television broadcasts had the second highest cable
rating in all of baseball and are often one of the most watched program
offerings in the market.
•
The
Cardinals radio broadcasts on KTRS average over 152,000 listeners per game and
its affiliate market is the second largest in baseball with 117 stations in nine
states (Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana,
Iowa, Kansas,
Kentucky, Missouri, Mississippi and
Tennessee)
with the potential to reach over 21 million listeners.
• In one year, the
Stadium sells:
o
540,000
hot dogs;
o
181,000
pounds of nacho chips; and
o
32,000
gallons of nacho cheese.
• During a typical
season the Cardinals go through:
o
7,315,200 ft of
paper towels
o
15,373,800 ft of
toilet paper
• Cardinals Care has
distributed more than $15 million to area organizations and built 19 Youth
Baseball Fields since its formation in 1997.
• In 2009, Cardinals
Care was able to build All-Star Field at Herbert Hoover Boys & Girls Club
and distribute over $2 million in cash grants to over 200 non-for-profit
agencies as a result of the team hosting the All-Star Game.
• In 2009, Redbird
Rookies had 20 leagues, serving nearly 4,000 kids in the St. Louis Metropolitan
area, as well as parts of rural Missouri and
Illinois.
• Since the
Cardinals launched the 4 A Greener Game Initiative in 2008, the team has
recycled over 462 tons of cardboard, paper, aluminum and plastic; and diverted
282 tons of yard waste from local landfills.
o
The
team has reduced its energy use by 14.1% since the new stadium opened
o
22% of
the teams waste was diverted from landfills in 2009