A Hot Day For A Good Game

St. Louis is a baseball loving town, and Opening Day for the Cardinals is an unofficial a holiday. That unofficial holiday was today.

The game against the Tampa Bay Rays didn't start until mid-afternoon, but when Hubby Tony and I left the house to walk after breakfast we were both wearing team logo t-shirts. Many of the people we saw were doing the same, and later when I ran errands there were a lot more.

Some Opening Days are cold. Some are rainy. Some are balmy. This year it felt more like July than March. The temperature when the game began was 93 degrees, which set a record for both the day (87 degrees, set in 1991) and the entire month of March (92 degrees, set on March 24, 1929).

Before the game starts there are a whole slew of events that take place. First a wagon pulled by a team of Budweiser Clydesdales circles the warning track. Then the the team owners and management are introduced. Next are motorcades of the Cardinals Hall of Famers (riding in Mustang convertibles) and current players (in a Ford pickup truck). Then comes the National Anthem, and finally a ceremonial first pitch.

The Cardinals scored in the third inning, and Tampa in the fifth. I stepped out of the room to put some laundry away. When I came back Tampa was ahead 5-1, and by the time the their half of the sixth inning ended the score was 6-1. I am a pretty fair weather fan, and that was enough for me. Tony left for an evening event, and although I left the TV on for background noise I didn't pay much attention to it.

However, when I heard the fans in the stadium cheering I decided to take a look. Much to my surprise the Cardinals had scored three more runs. Before their half of the sixth inning ended they had scored eight runs, which made the score 9-7. That was the final score.