Cardinals Home Opener

Yesterday was the Cardinals Home Opener. All the bells and whistles were pulled out for this one. Hall of Famers Bob Gibson, Ozzie Smith, Red Schoendiest, Lou Brock, Stan 'the man" Musial, and soon to be Hall of Famer Bruce Sutter were all in attendance for this historic event. The 2006 St. Louis Cardinals rode out to home plate in stylish red and white convertibles. Yadier Molina, Mark Mulder, and hitting coach Duncan remained in the bullpen preparing for the game. And what a game. The first ceremonial pitches were thrown by Cy Young Winner Chris Carpenter, and MVP Albert Pujols. Catching these pitches were two time Cy Young Winner Bob Gibson, and former MVP Willie McGee who suprised fans by walking onto the field. For a home opener, this one is going to go down in the record books. Mark Mulder was on fire! Not only did he pitch 8 great innings, he also got a double and a homerun. Both were the first in his career. Yadier Molina wen 0 for 4, however one was a sacrafice fly to get a runner in. The game started off with little action, until Brewers infielder Bill Hall will go down forever in the record books as the first player to hit a homerun in the new Busch Stadium. Would have been a lot better had the first homerun been hit by a Cardinal, but the Cards won the game, so the end result is what matters most. Albert Pujols was the first birds on the bat to hit a homer. Scott Rolen delievered a two-out, two-run double, and made a spectacular catch, and then throw to first base on his knees!! Welcome back Rolen!! Any naysayers of Rolen being at 100%, can now officially shut up. The Cards had a nail bitting 9th inning, but Izzy managed to hold on and give the Cardinals a 6-4 win. The Cards record now stands at 4-3. Where we stand in the central division is not an issue yet, so let's worry about that come July or August. In the meantime, let's just enjoy good old Cardinals baseball!! In a fabulous new stadium!!
Let's Go Cardinals!!