As mentioned earlier this evening. Courtesy of the Baseball Hall of Fame’s YouTube channel.
Once again the St. Louis Cardinals take the lead as the best franchise in baseball by hosting “Stan Musial Harmonica Night” on April 12. Every child twelve and under will receive a free harmonica.
One they maybe they can grow up and play that very same harmonica at Cooperstown.
The late Stan Musial appears on four regional SI covers this week. The Cardinals legend died at the age of 92. (Bettman/Corbis; Mark Kauffman/SI; Rich Clarkson/SI)
Obit of the Day: The Cardinals’ Vital Organ
For 40 seasons, beginning in 1971 and ending in 2010, fans of the St. Louis Cardinals would listen to the marvelous organ playing of Mr. Ernie Hays. Hays, who left the team after a change to recorded and non-traditional music, passed away at the age of 77.
Hays was probably the only sports organist with a degree in electrical engineering. He was certainly the only one to help calibrate test components for the Gemini space missions.
Ernie Hays, also played organ for St. Louis University, the St. Louis Spirits (ABA), the St. Louis Blues (NHL), and the NFL’s St. Louis Cardinals (now in Phoenix). He is best known for his rendition of the Budweiser jingle, “Here Comes the King,” which he would play during the seventh inning stretch at Cardinals games. (For decades the Cardinals were owned by the Busch family, who also brewed Budweiser beer. However Hays first played the song at an indoor soccer game.)
(Video of Hays playing “Here Comes the King” is courtesy of sebben76 via YouTube.com)
Now that the ALCS and NLCS are set baseball fans are looking at quite the history represented by the four teams. In fact it may be the most successful foursome since the LCS began in 1969.
Between the Giants, Cardinals, Yankees, and Tigers they have earned 48 World Championships, 93 pennants, and made 114 playoff appearances.
They have played a total of 74,878 games with a combined winning percentage of .515. (The Cards started playing in 1882, the Giants in 1883, the Yankees and Tigers in 1901.) The Giants have more wins than any other team in MLB history (10,616); the Cardinals are 4th (10,283). The Yankees are 8th overall and 1st in the American League with 9,318 wins. The Tigers are 12th with 8,828 - oddly enough 4th in the AL behind the Red Sox and the Indians (!).
The teams have had 12 of the 16 Triple Crowns in MLB history. They have won 22 Rookie of the Year Awards, 64 MVPs, and 14 Cy Youngs. (The Tigers have two pitchers who have won both in the same year - Justin Verlander in 2011 and Willie Hernandez in 1984.)
Combined the Giants, Cardinals, Yankees, and Tigers have 62 Hall of Famers (based on HOFers who most identified with the teams) - which is about 20% of the total. The Giants have the most with 23. The Yankees are only 3rd.
So these are old and good teams. And have been for over 100 years. Baseball is wonderful.
[If you can’t get appreciate the history, here’s one hater fact for you: all four LCS teams have payrolls over $100 million. (This is the 2nd time this has occurred. The first was 2009 with the Yankees, Angels, Dodgers and Phillies.)]
Images:
Christy Mathewson - 1915 Cracker Jack - courtesy of vintagecardprices.com
Buster Posey - 2010 Bowman - courtesy of sfweekly.com
Stan Musial - 1953 Topps - courtesy of whig.com
Chris Carpenter - 2010 Sports Illustrated for Kids - autographsforsale.com
Babe Ruth - 1933 Goudey Gum - vintagecardprices.com
Derek Jeter - 2002 Topps - halloffamememorabilia.com
Ty Cobb - 1914 Cracker Jack - vintagecardprices.com
Justin Verlander - 2005 Bowman - monstermarketplace.com
The New York Mets’ Johan Santana has thrown the first no-hitter in the franchise’s history - which dates back to 1962.
Santana’s line:
9 IP 0H 0R 0ER 5BB 8K 134 pitches
Take that, San Diego Padres. (The Padres have never had a no-no either. Their drought goes back to their entry into the NL in 1969.)
Sources: baseball-reference.com and MLB AtBat 2012 app
There are now six major league teams with 10,000 franchise wins:
San Francisco/New York Giants - 10,528
Chicago Cubs - 10,314
Los Angeles/Brooklyn Dodgers - 10,227
St. Louis Cardinals - 10,204
Atlanta/Milwaukee/Boston Braves - 10,042
Cincinnati Reds - 10,000
Up next: Pittsburgh Pirates - 9,887; New York Yankees - 9,774
Source: baseball-reference.com
(Logos are all copyright of their respective teams and Major League Baseball.)
