Go Crazy Folks!

Go crazy! How appropriate is it that in the same year that Cardinal great Bruce Sutter (the last Redbird hurler to throw a strike to win a World Series) was inducted into the baseball hall of fame, rookie reliever Adam Wainright threw strike three to win the Series!? I was eleven years old when the Cards last won it all. Like most boys that age I worshipped baseball. I played little league. I collected baseball cards. I watched every game on KPLR-TV. I listened to Jack on the radio. Until last night I almost forgot how it felt to watch Darrel Porter sprinting toward his battery mate in celebration. Last night it was Yadier Molina and Wainright, but the feeling was the same.

I am not alone in this feeling of jubilation. Millions of Cardinal fans across Missouri and the Midwest shared in my joy. For us, Cardinal baseball is more than a summertime diversion. It is what we look forward to all winter. It is what we talk about all spring. It is what we focus on all summer. And it is something we all look forward to celebrating every fall. Sure, the Yankees have more World Series wins. But New Yorkers don't live and die with their team's wins and losses. They expect their overpayed collection of primadonnas to produce results. They boo their own players when they fail. They call for their manager to be fired after every season in which they fail to win it all- despite his record of success. In Missouri, we forge an intimate relationship with our team. We welcome cast-offs from other teams into the Cardinal family. Many "has-beens" have enjoyed the remainder of their careers in St. Louis when otherwise they would have been forced to retire. Larry Walker, Scott Spezio, Jeff Weaver, Will Clark, Mark McGwire, Dennis Eckersly, Bruce Sutter, and Roger Maris all came to St. Louis to end their careers in a town where they would be appreciated. Second in World Championships only to those reviled Yankees, the Cardinals have proven again that guts, teamwork, and determination- not the highest payroll in professional sports, are all a team needs to succeed. And a faithful fanbase. Fans that have been there for their team in good times, bad times, and everything in between.

Last night I felt like an 11 year old boy again. So did the men on that field. Everybody who has played baseball has fantasized about winning the World Series from the time they first swung a bat. For the Redbirds (and we the fans living vicariously through them), our dreams have come true. Congrats Cardinals! And thank you.