This is Part 2 of a three-part series chronicling Keith Hernandez’s career, which includes Part 1: Road to the MVP and Part 3: Post-Cardinals Career and Legacy. After Keith Hernandez‘s MVP season, the Cardinals rewarded him with a five-year, $3.8 million contract. The contract made Hernandez’s salary more than 10 times larger than the …
Keith Hernandez Part 2: Champions in ’82, Traded in ’83 Read More »
This is Part 1 of a three-part series chronicling Keith Hernandez’s career, which includes Part 2: Champions in ’82, Traded in ’83 and Part 3: Post-Cardinals Career and Legacy. Even before Keith Hernandez was born, the St. Louis Cardinals figured prominently in his life. Hernandez’s father, John, had been a left-handed hitting first baseman in …
The trade to obtain Jack Clark may have taken longer than anyone would have liked, but in the end, the St. Louis Cardinals had the middle-of-the-order slugger they needed to capture two National League championships. After finishing third in the National League East in 1984, Cardinals manager Whitey Herzog made clear that his top priority …
February 1, 1985: Cardinals finalize trade for Jack Clark Read More »
For decades afterward, Cardinals fans would simply remember the game as “Seat Cushion Night.” The Cardinals and Mets game on April 18, 1987, appeared on the schedule to be an ordinary April ballgame. It was just the 10th game of the season for both teams, and while the St. Louis and New York ballclubs were …
The day after the Cardinals, Phillies, and Indians agreed on a three-team deal that sent Lonnie Smith to St. Louis, Philadelphia Daily News reporter Bill Conlin wrote that it “was a deal filled with marvelous paradoxes.”[1] The Cardinals already had outfielders George Hendrick, David Green, Dane Iorg, and Sixto Lezcano on the roster, and had …
November 20, 1981: Cardinals trade for Lonnie Smith Read More »
On the same day that Tommy John threw seven shutout innings to lead the Yankees to a 3-0 win over the Dodgers in Game 2 of the 1981 World Series, the Cardinals and Yankees quietly made a deal that would help the Cardinals capture the 1982 world championship. The trade, which sent Yankees minor league …
October 21, 1981: Yankees’ outfield logjam allows Cardinals to trade for Willie McGee Read More »
Bob Forsch wasn’t looking to make history. When the 33-year-old right-hander took the Busch Stadium mound on September 26, 1983, he was just looking to salvage a miserable season, both for himself and for the defending world champions. Heading into their second-to-last home stand of the season, the Cardinals were just 75-81, 11 games behind …
September 26, 1983: Bob Forsch throws his second no-hitter Read More »
If you’re going to steal 110 bases as a rookie, you don’t have any time to waste. So when Tito Landrum and Willie McGee both went down with injuries, Vince Coleman made sure to make the most of his opportunity. Coleman had been attracting headlines for two years, ever since setting a new professional baseball …
April 18, 1985: Vince Coleman steals two bags in his MLB debut Read More »
