St. Louis Cardinals Hall Of Famer Enos Slaughter Passes

On August 12, 2002, was a day of mourning for the St. Louis Cardinals. Baseball Hall-of-Famer Enos Slaughter passed away at the age of 86. He was inducted in 1985 after playing 19 seasons in the major leagues, 13 with St. Louis he was a career .300 hitter. 

Slaughter also led the Cardinals to two World Series titles.

Overall, Slaughter was involved in five World Series with four wins in 1942, 1946, 1956 an 1958, the first two with the St. Louis Cardinals and the later two with the New York Yankees.

He joined the New York Yankees later in his career and helped them to the promised land three years in a row from 1956 to 1950. In the storied history of the Cardinals, Slaughter was one of the most consistent hitters in the franchise's history.

Slaughter was also a 10 time All-Star selection, all 10 times coming with the St. Louis Cardinals. The St. Louis Cardinals retired his no. 9 jersey in 1996.

His career accomplishments are especially impressive considering that he missed three seasons beginning in 1943 (when he was 27) to serve in the military during World War II.

Philadelphia Phillies Reach 10,000 Losses

July 15, 2007, the St. Louis Cardinals crush the Philadelphia Phillies, 10-2, making the Phillies the first team in sports history to reach 10,000 franchise losses. The Phillies had been a terrible organization for decades and once went 98 years without a championship. At the moment, the city of Philadelphia was in a winless streak of its own, having not won a title since 1983. 

However, the Philadelphia fans appeared to embrace the lackluster distinction; they chanted "10,000" throughout the game and gave the club a standing ovation when they finally lost.

The Phillies' accomplishment had been 125 years in the making. They began play in 1883 as the Philadelphia Quakers and inauspiciously lost the first eight games of the season; in 1904, they became the first team to ever lose 100 games in a year; from 1918 to 1948, the Phillies had just one winning season and placed among the bottom three teams in the National League 28 times; in 1961, they lost a big league record 23 games in a row; in 1964, they blew a six-and-a-half game lead with 12 games to go in the season; in 1993, they lost the World Series on a game-winning home run to Joe Carter. They had even started a pitcher in 1940's (Hugh Mulcahy) who was so bad that he earned the nickname "Losing Pitcher."

But as they say, it's always darkest before the dawn. Philly fans basked in the sorrow that came with their 10,000 loss, but just one year later, they defeated the Tampa Bay Rays to win their second World Series in franchise history. As Ed Barkowitz of the Philadelphia Daily News wrote after the title, "Phillies' 10,000 losses are a distant memory."

Check out a fan's view from the Phillies franchise loss 10,000: 

Mark McGwire Hits 300th Home Run

On June 25, 1996 Oakland Athletics slugger Mark McGwire hits home run number 300 for his career, he would end his career with 583 home runs.

In 1987, he broke the single-season home run record for rookies, with 49. Throughout his career Mark McGwire hit 49 or more home runs five times en route to hitting 583 career home runs. Four times McGwire led the league in home runs. For his career, McGwire averaged a home run once every 10.61 at bats, the best at bats per home run ratio in baseball history (Babe Ruth is second at 11.76).

1n 1998 as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals McGwire and fellow National League central rival, Chicago Cubs right fielder Sammy Sosa both encountered on a record-breaking home run season. McGwire and Sosa would both end up breaking Babe Ruth’s single season home run record of 61 home runs, as Sosa went on to hit 66 home runs and McGwire 70.

McGwire’s 70 home run season was a Major League record until 2002 when Barry Bonds broke the feat when he hit 72 home runs.

McGwire finished his career with a .263 career batting average, 1,626 hits, 1,167 runs, 1,414 RBIs to go along with his 583 home runs. His career on base percentage was .394, his career slugging percentage was .588 and his on base plus slugging was .982.

McGwire was the 1987 American League Rookie of the Year, and was a 12-time All-Star including six-straight appearances twice, from 1987-1992 and from 1995-2000. He was a two-time World Series Champion, once as a player with the Oakland Athletics in 1989 and once as a coach with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2011. He won a Golden Glove at first base with the A’s in 1990 and won three Silver Slugger awards, two with the A’s in 1992 and 1996 and one with the Cardinals in 1998. McGwire also won the 1992 Home Run Derby and was given the Lou Gehrig Award in 1999.

Also in 1999 he was named to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.

McGwire also played for Team USA in the Los Angeles Olympics in 1984 helping Team USA earn a Silver medal. McGwire also helped the United States in international play during the Pan American Games and Intercontinental Cup in 1983 helping the USA earn a Bronze and Silver medals respectively.

In 1999, The Sporting News released a list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players. The list had been compiled during the 1998 season and included statistics through the 1997 season. McGwire was ranked at Number 91.

In 2005, The Sporting News published an update of their list and McGwire had been moved up to Number 84.

However, in the 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013 balloting for the Baseball Hall of Fame, McGwire failed to attain election receiving 128 of the 545 cast (23.5 percent of the vote) in 2007, 128 of 543 (23.6) in 2008, 118 of 539 (21.9) in 2009, 128 of 539 (23.7) in 2010, 115 of 581 (19.8) in 2011, 112 of 573 (19.5) in 2012, and 96 of 569 (16.9) in 2013.

McGwire had a Hall of Fame career based on his stats and accomplishments but because of his trouble with performance enhancing drugs (PED) his call to the hall might come in to questioning.

St. Louis Cardinals' Stan Musial Breaks National League Hit Record

On May 19, 1962, St. Louis Cardinals great and Hall of Famer Stan Musial breaks Honus Wagner's National League hit record with hit number 3,431.

Stan "The Man" Musial in the 1966 season.

Musial would finish his career with a .331 batting average with 3,630 hits, 475 home runs and 1,951 RBIs in 22 MLB seasons. One amazing feat that Musial accomplished was that he had just as many hits at-home as he did on the road, with 1,815 at home, and 1,815 on the road.

Musial played all 22 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals and was named an All-Star 24 times, including twice in 1959, 1960, 1961 and 1962 when the All-Star game was played twice, at the beginning of the season and at the traditional time half way through the season.

Musial was a three time World Series Champion with the Cardinals, 1942, 1944 and 1946. Musial missed out on the entire 1945 season after serving with the United States Navy.

Musial was also a three time National League MVP, winning the award in 1943, in 1946 he won the MVP after returning from Naval Duty and in 1948, when he won the MVP he finished just one home run shy of winning baseball's Triple Crown.

He was also a seven-time National League batting champion, including three consecutive years from 1950-1952.

In 1957 Musial received the Lou Gherig Memorial Award, which is given to the player who best exhibits the character and integrity of Lou Gehrig, both on the field and off it.

The St. Louis Cardinals retired Musial’s number six-jersey in 1963, after his retirement.

At the time of his retirement, Musial held or shared 17 major league records, 29 National League records, and 9 All-Star Game records.

In addition to overseeing businesses, such as a restaurant both before and after his playing career, Musial served as the Cardinals' general manager in 1967, winning the pennant and World Series, then quitting that position.

On August 4, 1968, a statue of Musial was erected outside of Busch Memorial Stadium on the northeast grounds of the St. Louis stadium.

The statue was moved from its original location to the west side of the new Busch Stadium for its first season in 2006, where it became a popular meeting place for generations of Cardinals fans.

Musial's statue is inscribed with a quote attributed to former baseball commissioner Ford Frick: "Here stands baseball's perfect warrior. Here stands baseball's perfect knight."

Stan Musial at Busch Stadium in St. Louis for Stan Musial Day in 2010.

He was elected the Cooperstown Baseball Hall of Fame in 1969 with 93.2 percent of the vote on the first ballot in which he appeared.

Musial was named to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team in 1999.

 In 2007, Musial received the Navy Memorial’s Lone Sailor Award, which honors Navy veterans who’ve excelled in civilian life.

In February 2011 President Barack Obama presented Musial with Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest honor that can be bestowed on a civilian in the United States.

Cardinals Move From St. Louis To Phoenix

On March 15, 1988, the NFL’s St. Louis Cardinals move to Phoenix and become the Arizona Cardinals.

An original St. Louis Cardinals football hat.

Despite losing the Cardinals the city of St. Louis would regain a football team seven years later when the Los Angeles Rams would move to St. Louis and become the St. Louis Rams.

A banner from the Phoenix Cardinals inaugural game at Sun Devil Stadium in 1988.

The Cardinals franchise has long been known as one of the fledgling franchises in NFL history, as they were without a championship since 1947, and have only been the playoffs six times in the last 66 years.

However the Cardinals franchise has been to the playoffs in two of the past six years (2008-2009), including a Super Bowl appearance in 2008 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

NFL Touchdown Record Set

On Nov. 2, 1969, an NFL record of 12 passing touchdowns is set as New Orleans Saints Billy Kramer and St. Louis Cardinals Charlie Johnson pass for six touchdowns each.

Red Sox End Curse

On Oct. 27, 2004, the Boston Red Sox put an end to the “Curse of the Bambino”. 

The Red Sox finally ended their championship curse as they defeated the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 4 of the World Series to complete the sweep.

It was the first title for the franchise since 1918. The Red Sox started their stunning postseason run by overcoming a 3-0 series deficit against the New York Yankees. Boston won eight straight games to close the postseason.

The Red Sox would continue their winning ways with another World Series title in 2006 as they swept the Colorado Rockies in four games.

This year the Red Sox are once again battling the St. Louis Cardinals in the World Series. But after last nights play the Red Sox now trail in the series two games to one.

Replacement Players In NFL

On Oct. 4, 1987, the NFL has replacement players play for the first time. The replacement players would last three weeks before the regular players would return. Most teams saw record low attendance during the replacement player games.

The 1987 NFL season was the sixty-eighth regular season of the National Football League. A 24-day players' strike reduced the 16-game season to 15. The games that were scheduled for the third week of the season were canceled, but the games for weeks 4–6 were played with replacement players. 85% of the veteran players did not cross picket lines during the strike.

The replacement player teams were given mock names like "Chicago Spare Bears", "San Francisco Phoney Niners", "New Orleans Saint Elsewheres", "Washington ScabSkins", and "Seattle Sea-scabs".

Final television revenues were down by about 20 percent, a smaller drop than the networks had expected. The defending Super Bowl Champion New York Giants went 0–3 in replacement games, ultimately costing them a chance to make the playoffs and repeat their championship.

After the season the St. Louis Cardinals' owners announced they would be leaving Missouri for Tempe, Arizona and become the Phoenix Cardinals for 1988.

The season ended with Super Bowl XXII when the Washington Redskins defeated the Denver Broncos 42-10 in Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego. The Broncos made their second consecutive Super Bowl appearance while the Redskins were returning for the first time since they advanced to Super Bowl XVIII four seasons earlier.

Cubs Win 116 Games

On Oct. 4, 1906, the Chicago Cubs picked up win 116 of the season against the Pittsburgh Pirates. 

The win moved the Cubs record to 116-36. That still stands as the best winning percentage ever. The Cubs failed to win the World Series, however, as they lost in six games. They would recover to win the World Series in 1907 and 1908.

Since 1906 only one team was reached as many wins as the Cubs, the 2001 Seattle Mariners who won 116 games but lost 46 compared to the 1906 Cubs who only lost 36. The reason for the discrepancy in games is because of the addition of more teams and more games to the regular season.

Since the record-tying performance with 116 wins by the Mariners in 2001, no team has gotten close to breaking the record. The 2004 St. Louis Cardinals have the most wins in the last decade with 105. In 2002 the Oakland Athletics and New York Yankees tied for the leagues best record with 103 wins apiece.

Seaver Sets A New Strikeout Record

On September 1, 1975, Hall of Famer and New York Mets great Tom Seaver becomes the first pitcher to strike out 200 in eight consecutive seasons.

Seaver would finish his career with 3,640 strikeouts, which at the time was good enough for third all-time being behind only Nolan Ryan and Steve Carlton at the time of his retirement.

The list of current 3000 strikeout pitchers includes in this order from most to least, Nolan Ryan, 5,714, Randy Johnson, 4,875, Roger Clemens, 4,672, Steve Carlton, 4,136, Bert Blyleven, 3,701, Tom Seaver, 3,640, Don Sutton, 3,574, Gaylord Perry, 3,534, Walter Johnson, 3,509, Greg Maddux, 3,371, Phil Niekro, 3,342, Ferguson Jenkins, 3,192, Pedro Martinez, 3,154, Bob Gibson, 3,117, Curt Schilling, 3,116 and John Smoltz, 3,084.

The 3,000-strikeout club might become more elusive as the closest pitcher to the feat is 48-year-old Jamie Moyer. Moyer is the active leader in strikeouts with 2,405 but is currently a free agent after being released by the Toronto Blue Jays AAA affiliate. Because of this Moyer will most likely not reach 3,000, and with the way the game has changed in recent years, one wonders if we will ever see another pitcher join the elusive 3,000 strikeout club.

Seaver had an excellent career that spanned 20-seasons with the New York Mets, Cincinnati Reds, Chicago White Sox and Boston Red Sox, though he primarily known for his time with the Mets.

Seaver’s career numbers include 656 games pitched with 647 starts for a total of 4,783 innings pitched. He put up 311 wins, 205 losses and one save, with 231 complete games and 61 shutouts. He had a 2.86 ERA with 3,640 strikeouts, to just 1,390 walks, allowing just 380 home runs over his career.

Five times Seaver led the league in strikeouts with his highest single season total coming in 1971 with 289. He led the league in ERA three times with his lowest single season ERA coming in 1971 with a 1.76 mark. Seaver also led the league in wins twice with his highest single season total coming in 1969 when he recorded 25 wins.

Seaver, a 12-time All-Star made seven consecutive appearances in the Mid Summer Classic from 1967-1973. He won three Cy Young Awards over his career in 1969, 1973 and 1975. He was a five-time National League Strikeout Champion, including back-to-back awards in 1970-1971, and 1975-1976. Seaver was a three time NL ERA Champion in 1970, 1971 and 1973. He was also a three time NL Wins Champion in 1969, 1975 and 1981. Seaver was also the 1967 Rookie of the Year.

Although he never won an MVP award Seaver was in the conversation 10 times over the course of his career and was on the top 10 in voting five times.

Seaver won the World Series in 1969 with the “Miracle Mets” and pitched a no-hitter on June 16, 1978 against the St. Louis Cardinals.

The Mets retired Seaver’s number 41 jersey in July of 1988.

Seaver was inducted into the Cooperstown Baseball Hall of Fame in 1992 with 98.84 percent of votes, making him the highest vote getter percentage wise ever in baseball history. He is also the only player to wear a New York Mets hat on his plaque in Cooperstown.

Cobb Makes His Debut

On Aug. 30, 1905 Ty Cobb made his major league debut for the Detroit Tigers. Cobb was just 19 years old and played in 41 games in 1905. 

He would retire as the all-time hits leader, with 4,191 hits, now he second behind only Pete Rose. 

He still holds the career record for batting average with .367, in part to such a high batting average was his three seasons of hitting over .400, which is tied for a MLB record. 

But what is more impressive is that he only batted below .320 once. Now if you bat .319 you are awesome, to Cobb that was a poor season.

Cobb also won 12 batting titles, including nine in a row from 1907-1915, he also owns the most batting titles of all time. Cobb also has the most career steals of home, with 54.

Cobb remained with the Tigers until 1926, as he player managed the team from 1921-1926. Cobb played his final two years with the Philadelphia Athletics from 1927-1928.

Cobb was named to the Major League Baseball All-Century Team, and Cooperstown Hall of Fame in 1936 with 98.2 percent of the vote.

Brock Sets A New Stolen Base Record

On August 29, 1977, Hall of Famer and St. Louis Cardinals great Lou Brock eclipses Ty Cobb's 49-year-old career stolen base record of 892 steals. Brock’s record-breaking performance came as he achieved career stolen base 893 in the loss to the Padres, 4-3.

Brock would go on to steal 938 bases, leaving him as the stolen base leader until Rickey Henderson broke the feat. Currently Brock is still second on the list, more than 300 stolen bases above Juan Pierre who is third on the list with 611.

Brock’s 19-year career with the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals saw him play in six All-Star games, including four consecutive appearances from 1971-1975. He was a two-time World Series Champion in 1964 and 1967, both with the St. Louis Cardinals.

Brock won several awards during his career, including the 1967 Babe Ruth Award, given to the player with the best performance in the postseason. The award, created by the New York chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA) in honor of Babe Ruth, was first awarded in 1949 to the MVP of the World Series, one year after Ruth's death.

The award continued to be awarded exclusively for performances in the World Series until 2007, when the New York chapter of the BBWAA changed the award to cover the entire postseason. Though it precedes the World Series Most Valuable Player Award, which was not created until 1955, the Babe Ruth Award is considered less prestigious, as it is not sanctioned by MLB and is awarded several weeks after the World Series.

Brock also won the 1975 Robert Clemente Award, which is given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) player who "best exemplifies the game of baseball, sportsmanship, community involvement and the individual's contribution to his team", as voted on by baseball fans and members of the media. It is named for Hall of Fame outfielder Roberto Clemente. Originally known as the Commissioner's Award, it has been presented by the MLB since 1971. In 1973, the award was renamed after Clemente following his death in a plane crash while delivering supplies to victims of the Nicaragua earthquake.

He also won the 1977 Lou Gehrig Memorial Award, which is given annually to a Major League Baseball (MLB) player who best exhibits the character and integrity of Lou Gehrig, both on the field and off it.

In 1979 Brock won two awards, the National League Comeback Player of the Year award given to the player who has the best season after an injury or dismal season. That same season Brock won the Hutch Award, which is given annually to an active Major League Baseball (MLB) player who "best exemplifies the fighting spirit and competitive desire" of Fred Hutchinson, by persevering through adversity.

Brock finished his career with a .293 batting average, with 3,023 hits, consisting of 486 doubles, 141 triples and 149 home runs. Brock also had 1,610 runs scores, 900 RBIs, and 706 walks in his career to go along with the 938 stolen bases. Eight times Brock led the league in steals with his highest single season total coming in 1974 with 118.

Although never an MVP, Brock was in the MVP conversation 10 times, with his highest finishing rank of second in 1974.

The St. Louis Cardinals retired his no. 20 jersey in 1979, and in 1985 Brock was elected into the Cooperstown Baseball Hall of Fame with 79.75 percent of the vote on the first ballot in which he appeared.

Five Way Wildcard Tie

On August 28, 2003, five National League teams were tied for the wildcard position, with another three teams within one game of the loss column. An eight-team race with only a month remaining in the regular season - you don't see that everyday.

Montreal Expos: The Expos were the best story of the year. Threatened by contraction only a year earlier, the Expos split time between Olympic Stadium in Montreal and Hiram Bithorn Stadium in Puerto Rico.

Despite traveling to three separate countries over the course of their schedule, and despite having an incredibly small payroll, the Frank Robinson-led Expos were the feel-good story of 2003 and finished with a winning record. Sadly, the team lost nine of their next ten games to completely fall out of contention. The team's star player, Vladimir Guerrero, left for the Anaheim Angels a year later, and due to poor attendance numbers in Montreal, the team moved to Washington D.C. in 2005.

Houston Astros: Technically, the wildcard race was a seven-team race, but because the NL Central-leading Astros were tied with the Cardinals, eight teams were involved. Houston would lose the Central by a single game while finishing as the runner-up in the wildcard too. Houston later added Roger Clemens and Andy Pettite, and with their already formidable batting order, the Astros went to the World Series in 2005. There they were swept by the Chicago White Sox.

Philadelphia Phillies: Every season, the Phillies were the dark horse team that could have been a contender but oddly wasn't. This year was no exception. On September 19, with less than ten games to go, Philadelphia was atop the wildcard standings. But in true Philadelphia style, the Phillies lost seven of their last eight games to erase any shred they had of the postseason. In 2008, the Phillies finally made it to the World Series. Less than a handful of players from the '03 team were on the 2008 version.

Florida Marlins: With 72 year-old Jack McKeon at the helm, the Marlins went on a tear down the stretch. After August 28, the Marlins won 13 of their next 15 games and 21 of their last 29. They finished four games ahead of the runner-up Astros, turning what was a competitive wildcard chase into a runaway. The Fish then beat the Giants and Cubs to advance all the way to the World Series, and in beating the New York Yankees, became the second wildcard team to win it all.

After the season, the small-market Marlins decided it wasn't worth it to keep their star players around. From Ivan Rodriguez to Josh Beckett, Miguel Cabrera, Carl Pavano, Mike Lowell, A.J. Burnett, Dontrelle Willis, and Derrek Lee, the team went on a complete firesale. In only four years, every single player from the 2003 championship team was off the roster. And people wonder why the Marlins get bad attendances... It's hard to follow a team when you know they'll get traded as soon as they win.

St. Louis Cardinals: From 2000 to 2006, the Cardinals won the National League Central division ... except for 2003. Never down by more than a half a dozen games, the Cards went .500 in September and failed to make up enough ground. They finished just three games out of the Central and six games behind the Florida Marlins. With mostly the same players, St. Louis went to the World Series in 2004 and 2006, winning it all on their second try.

Arizona Diamondbacks: Just two years after beating the New York Yankees in the World Series, the D-backs were once again in playoff the mix. Injuries would prove costly however. The dynamic pitching duo of Curt Schilling and Randy Johnson, who had both won 20 games the previous two seasons, missed a combined 29 starts. Further injuries to Tony Womack, Matt Williams, and Byung-Hyung Kim sunk the Diamondbacks' fate. After winning the NL West two years in a row, Arizona finished 15.5 games out of first in the NL West and 7 games out in the wildcard.

Los Angeles Dodgers: Los Angeles stayed competitive thanks to their excellent pitching. The Dodgers posted the best ERA in the National League and featured Cy Young winner Eric Gagne, who had the greatest season of any closer in history: 55 saves, 0 blown saves, a 1.20 ERA, and 137 strikeouts in just 82.3 innings. The Dodgers' bats failed to carry their weight. LA ranked in the bottom five in the National League in runs, hits, doubles, walks, and home runs and lacked a single batter who hit over .300. LA lost 9 of their last 14 and finished six behind the Marlins for the wildcard.

Chicago Cubs: Last, but not least, the Cubs. Chicago would not win as many games as the Marlins, but by finishing ahead of the Astros and Cardinals, they conquered the NL Central and got into the postseason nonetheless. The Cubs and Astros were tied with only three games to go; Chicago won two of their final three games while Houston lost two of three.

The Cubs made it all the way to the National League Championship Series, where they collided with the wildcard-winning Florida Marlins. Chicago led the series 3-2 with games 6 and 7 being played in the windy city, and had their top two pitchers, Kerry Wood and Mark Prior, going in both contests. The Cubs lost both matches. In one of them, a foul ball veering into the stands was deflected by Steve Bartman, who would become the most infamous fan in sports history. The Cubs' defeat was likely their most painful in franchise history; never had they come so close to victory in defeat.