Sports in St. Louis, Saint Louis

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The sheer loyalty for a baseball team is hard to imagine, but nearly the whole city takes pride in the team. Now that a new stadium is built, the old one seems passe, but it really held a lot of memories for me, and I am sure others. The cheering in there is deafening when they get going.
A new stadium was built is 2005 and it was to be a downtown renovation anchor, however, basically only the stadium got completed with other plans collapsed.

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Wait till you see the price for a beer! I have curtailed my baseball game visits significantly since they built the new stadium.
For cheap parking at Cardinals games I park south of the stadium and walk. I usually end up on 7th street just south of Chouteau. You can find $5 parking there. About 1/2 mile walk to the home plate entrance from there Sometimes you can find free parking if you arrive soon enough before the game. You will find the Eat Rite Diner at the corner of Chouteau and 7th if you want to eat before the game and they offer $10 parking for the game. (great greasy diner cuisine) You'll also find vendors offering peanuts and cracker jack type items that you can bring into the park at a much lower cost than Busch offers.

Depending on the season, St. Louis is the place to be for a sports fan. I am a big hockey fan, so I go to a lot of St. Louis Blues games at the Savvis Center. The Savvis center also houses the SLU college basketball team and a score of other events from Pro Wrestling to rock concerts to Monster Truck events (but if I find out any of you are into monster trucks, I will never stop teasing you). You can also see the STL Cardinals baseball team at Busch Stadium and of course the STL Rams at their dome.
The three pro sports teams that play in St. Louis play near each other--you can ride the metro link (our sad version of public transportation) through the down town area to see the stadiums. From Busch Stadium you can even see the Arch, and its down the street from Anheiser Busch where you can take a tour of the factory and taste different beers.

I suppose it’s fair to say I had somewhat of an idea about just how fanatical sports fans from Missouri are (being married to one), but I wasn’t prepared for what greeted me at the Busch Stadium during a Cardinals home game. I’m not much for spectator sports and have even been known to refer to the SuperBowl as the World Series and vice versa - but even I can admit that baseball games have sure come a long way. I remember when they were just about “peanuts and cracker jacks”.

Full Stop: Today

At Busch Stadium, you are treated to a complete “entertainment extravaganza” (and that includes gourmet dining, should you choose to forego the ubiquitous Hot Dog in favor of, say, Prime Rib or Lobster Rangoon). I never did figure out why baseball seems to take so long to play, but a good time was had by all.

So if you’re in St. Louis and there happens to be a “Cards Game” going on, by all means, check out the action (otherwise known as the local obsession!).

Opened in 1966, the Busch Stadium in this photo was the 8th oldest park in Major League Baseball, after 40 years of operation, it was replaced in 2006 with New Busch Stadium, also in downtown, on part of the same site of the old ballpark. This is actually the third stadium to have the Busch name, as after Anheuser-Busch purchased the team in the 1950s, they gave Sportsman's Stadium the Busch name.

The new stadium (Busch Stadium III) holds 46,000 spectators and offers a great view of the downtown buildings, framed by the Gateway Arch.

On to sports! Gotta go to a Cardinal game. Nothing like being there with 50,000 other people. Hopefully Big Mac will be healthy and playing when you're there!
One of the oldest stadiums still being used---although they're trying to change that soon. I hate to see the old stadium go.

UPDATE---Mark McGwire went and retired on us. Decided he'd rather get remarried and start another family than to play baseball anymore. Darn.

The St. Louis Cardinals were the only team in baseball to win three pennants in the 1980's and have won more World Series championships (9) than any other National League team. St. Louis is known as a savvy baseball town so much so that in 2000 Sports Illustrated called it 'America's best baseball city' and in 1998 Baseball America magazine also named St. Louis as America's Best Baseball City.

It pains me as a lifelong Cubs fan to say it, but St. Louis is a baseball town, and they love their Cardinals. And I certainly understand why. They win every once in a while, which is more than the Cubs have done for... er... ever. And they've got that McGuire guy. But regardless, the Cards are St. Louis and St. Louis are the Cards.

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St. Louis Cardinals fans are often considered the best in baseball, and it's easy to see why. Packing their the new Busch Stadium for a weeknight game in August, everyone was dressed in red and in their seats by game time. They are knowledgeable about the game and found excitement in the 1-0 pitching duel we witnessed against the Astros. Adam Wainright was given a standing ovation as he headed back to the dugout from the on deck circle, being removed from the game for a pinch hitter in the 8th with his thin victory margin -- and the fans noticed. The new park is beautifully contstructed, highlighting the old courthouse in the bleacher gap in left field and the Gateway Arch in right. Of course, Albert Pujols was the hero, driving in the only rn with a first inning double that we arrived just in time to see.
The only downside: I couldn't find any other beer but Budweiser in the Stadium. The proud franchise was long owned by Anheuser-Busch and that loyalty (or contract) still holds! Rumor has it that you can get some Schafley brews there, but I covered half the ground concourse and came up empty.

You must catch the last of the Busch Stadium games before the old stadium is tore down. Next season will be played in the brand new stadium. I have been to Busch Stadium many times since I was a baby. I will be sorry to see it go but I am excited to see the new stadium.