A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

April 29, 2010 | mriehn | Comments 0

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by Michael Riehn
Whiteyball Staff

Cardinal Legends Gather for Opening Day (photo courtesy of Nathan Heimgartner)

Imagine a gorgeous summer day with temperatures in the low 80’s. You sit down next to some of your closest friends talking baseball in anticipation of an upcoming game, the first one you’ve seen this year. A warm breeze carries the smell of barbecue as you take a pull from a cold beverage and smile at your good fortune.

I attended my 8th straight St. Louis Cardinal home Opening Day this year, but this one seemed more special than usual. The last couple of seasons, we’ve had rain, snow and overall terrible weather. Attending opening day has almost been more like survival than enjoyment. We hadn’t seen a Cardinal win since 2006 and each of the teams had major flaws that made you doubt how far they’d go.

This year, everything has come together. After a spectacular offseason in which the Cardinals filled their most glaring weaknesses (Holliday, Lopez, Penny, Garcia, Rasmus 2.0), the Cardinals are 15-7 to begin the season and are showing why they are one of the best teams in baseball.

We Have It Good
I was lucky enough to attend the Cardinals away opener in Cincinnati and the difference couldn’t be more striking. Cincinnati was great, but there is added electricity to the air in St. Louis. From the Cardinals pregame ceremonies with the Clydesdales, introductions of Hall of Famers and players to the massive fan support downtown, you figure out how special we have it in St. Louis.

This doesn’t just stop on opening day. The Cardinals routinely have 40,000 strong at the ballpark while other teams struggle to draw 20,000 fans. It doesn’t hurt that the Cardinals have a strong team, but even good teams are feeling the economy around Major League Baseball.

Holliday Blogging

Baby Bryson

After a Winter hiatus, I will be back to blogging around once a week. It’s been a busy time preparing for new beginnings as my son was born April 28th (the same birthday as David Freese).

I also had the opportunity to write for a great Cardinal pre-season magazine (Maple Street Annual). Check it out if you get a chance.  It is full of great information about the 2010 team.  You can find the magazine at many St. Louis (and Southeast Missouri) grocery stores and newsstands or go here.

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