red october.

October. The leaves are turning red and so are the Zoo visitors! 

Once again, the Cardinals have made it to the World Series and we St. Louisans are all dressing for the occasion. 

There’s just something about October baseball. I’m not going to lie, I don’t watch every single Cardinals game all season long. In fact, I have a confession–I actually really don’t like watching sports. Weird, I know, because I LOVE playing sports. But watching? Nah. I’d rather be on the field. 

I can’t pretend I know everything that is happening in every game (and let’s be honest, if I did, my family would call me out on it immediately). And my Zoo Crew softball teammates DEFINITELY know that I don’t even understand all of the rules!

But there’s just something about Cardinal baseball, especially October Cardinal baseball. 

I grew up with a six foot tall poster of Fred Bird in my bedroom. My mom’s signed Stan Musial and Bob Gibson balls are prized possessions on my family home’s shelves. The sound of summer, to me, is the voice of Jack Buck crackling on the radio and I shed a tear or two watching the old Busch Stadium being torn down. 

When we won the World Series in 2006, I was on a bus with my college field hockey team. There were several players from St. Louis and we all prayed to reach our hotel in Tennessee before the final out. 

In 2011, I sat captivated at my best friend’s rehearsal dinner as David Freese catapulted our redbirds into a game seven. We wore Cardinals jackets and jerseys all day at the wedding, after they brought home the championship. 

No, I can’t claim to be a baseball nut, but I still treasure these memories always. There’s something about Cardinal baseball that brings this city together. We wear our pride well, decked out in red, smiling at each other on the streets as we anticipate each night’s game. We sit together in tense excitement, gritting teeth and clenching rally towels as pitch after pitch hurtles through the air. We cheer together. We sigh together. We celebrate and mourn along with our home team. And that, my friends, is simply what this city is all about.

We may be down a game in the series, but do not fret. We are not out. It is not over. This is no time for tears.

Besides, there’s no crying in baseball, anyway!

To cheer everyone up as we prep for the next game, enjoy this lovely, little recap of our river city celebrating in 2011. A happy night, indeed.