Do they still have those cardboard cutouts from last year?
They might need them to fill seats in the coming weeks.
Wednesday night’s Cardinals game was an event — biggest game of the year, first-place Milwaukee in town, Jack Flaherty pitching, wild card chances blossoming — yet there were nearly 20,000 unsold seats.
Asked about getting to pitch in front of the home crowd for the first time in a while, Flaherty said: “It was good to pitch for this team. You’re at the game. You see how full it is.”
And the 25,938 who did come Wednesday to Busch Stadium watched the Cardinals blow a game in unfathomable fashion — the night after Tuesday’s infuriating loss.
We’ll surely talk and talk about the wild card in the coming weeks, and how the Cards are still in the hunt, and how all you’ve got to do is get in the playoffs and anything can happen. But right now, the story is Wednesday, this gobsmacking turn-of-events in a half-full stadium.
The Cards needed to win Wednesday to assert themselves — and reset themselves — in what was left of a division race. Now, there essentially isn’t one. In a matter of 48 hours, the Cards went from 10 games back of the Brewers to 12 games back. They lost this series, even though they got quality starts from Adam Wainwright and Flaherty. Sure, yeah, they have 11 more games against Milwaukee. But this team, in first place on May 30, has made too many missteps on the field and miscalculations in the front office to win the division. And so, they lost a division they really could’ve won. Wednesday was the brutal denouement.
First, consider that they actually scored three runs in Wednesday’s first two innings against a guy in the top five in ERA. Freddy Peralta then left the game with a shoulder injury. This was the Cards’ chance to pounce. With St. Louis up 3-0, Milwaukee would have to fill seven innings with relievers. That’s a lot of innings, even for the mighty Brewers’ bullpen.
But the Cards didn’t score again until extra innings, with a man starting at second.
There were many Cardinals to blame for Wednesday’s 6-4 loss. And some umps, too. There were brutal strike calls — on both teams. But look — Nolan Arenado had a right to be mad about the strike calls, but he was wrong to put himself in a spot to get ejected. Too big of a game. Too important of a time in the season. But Arenado was tossed — which means in the bottom of the ninth, with the game tied and a runner on first, the No. 3-hole hitter for St. Louis was Edmundo Sosa.
Closer Alex Reyes, the feel-good story of the first half, has now allowed 11 earned runs in 13 1/3 innings since the All-Star break. On Wednesday, with the Cards up, 3-2, in the top of the ninth, he allowed a solo homer. Brutal. Then he allowed three runs in the 10th, which featured a Reyes wild pitch and throwing error.
A couple weeks ago, the question was — will Alex Reyes be the closer or a starter next year?
Now the question should be — will Alex Reyes even be the closer by the end of this year?
Credit Flaherty for pitching masterfully in his first home start since his oblique injury. But Flaherty also pointed out the lack of fans. Clearly, it was out of frustration. But it ignites a debate that’s already been heated on social media.
A debate about blame.
Should more fans come and support this team?
Is this team underachieving so much that it keeps fans away?
And, of course, what are the effects of the pandemic on the size of crowds?
After a sparse Tuesday crowd of 28,058, Wednesday’s crowd was 25,938. It was eye-catching and eye-opening how many open seats there were at first pitch. Numerous empty sections in the upper deck. Empty rows in numerous sections from top to bottom. As the Cards took the field, I tweeted a photo from the stadium, and soon there were more than 75 replies on the tweet. So many opinions, so many complaints. And that was even before they lost the game.
There’s been a bit of a 2011 vibe around the stadium the last couple days. David Freese was here. Players have referenced the amazing comeback of the 2011 Cardinals, who by late August were 10 ½ out of the wild card. And Milwaukee was in town — that was the big rival that season … and that postseason.
But after another loss in a tight game, the 2021 Cardinals showed just how much difference there is between them and the first place Brewers.
This series was a chance for the Cards to show they can execute winning baseball against teams above .500. Instead, they lost Tuesday and lost Wednesday and lost the hope of some fans heading into Thursday and beyond (if they hadn’t already).
Maybe the upcoming games against the Pirates and Tigers will lead to more wins against sub-.500 teams. Maybe the Cards really will have a chance to be wild cards.
But will that be enough to get fans to the stadium?
