Sorry to the guy at the laundromat who thought I was a Brewers fan. I’m not. Even though I may not be able to name any current players, I have always loved the St. Louis Cardinals. The team will always have a special place in my heart. When I was younger, my family lived in Missouri. Dad told me and my younger sister, Kristen (who is a year younger than I am) that we could go anywhere we wanted for a father-daughter day. Krissy always chose to visit the zoo with Dad while I wanted to go Busch Stadium to see the St. Louis Cardinals play.
Those were the days of Ozzie Smith, Willie McGee, and Tony Pena, who was my favorite player solely based on him being the catcher. I was an amazing catcher on softball team so I needed to love the Cardinals’ catcher. I may not know much about the team now, but this is what I remember. Tony Pena was with the team for only two years. The team faced off against the Kansas City Royals in the 1985 World Series — the year the family moved to Kansas. The Cardinals lost. Then St. Louis faced against the Minnesota Twins in the 1987 World Series — the year we moved to Minnesota. Once again, the Cards lost. At the time, Dad was the school principal, and after the final game, a toy cardinal was hanging upside down on his office door.
When we still lived in Missouri, I think Dad taught me everything he knew about the Cardinals and other baseball teams. I may not be an avid fan and keep up with the team, but the Cards will always have a special place in my heart. On the bright side, I didn’t defect to the Royals, Twins, or Brewers (the states where I’ve lived). My loyalty will always lie with the St. Louis Cardinals and the Minnesota Vikings (which is a whole other story). GO CARDINALS!
JENNIFER ELLIOTT 