The Lou 2011, Day 5

Sunday was our last day in St. Louis. It was all about baseball. It was supposed to be a day game, where we would have gone to a 1:15 PM game, waited around for Drew to run the bases after the game for the special promotion, and come home. However, ESPN picked up the game for Sunday Night Baseball, meaning that the game was moved from 1:15 to 7:05. What were we going to do with the rest of the day and what time would we get home? Well, we decided to get to the park early, very early actually. Early enough, in fact, that we were able to take the special guided tour of the stadium. We got to experience the exclusive and public parts of Busch Stadium. The exclusive parts included the Champion's Suite honoring all of the World Series victories and held that latest World Series trophy, and the Legend's Club, the exclusive dining area for the super rich.

We also got to visit the announcer's booth where Mike Shannon sits and calls the games. This room had the best view by far. It also had a well stocked fridge of Bud Light that I'm sure Mr. Shannon enjoys during each game. It should also be noted that he sits on a large rubber ball rather than a conventional chair to help his back. One room had the team owner's old baseball card collection converted into magical wallpaper.

They haven't set up the Hall of Fame area with all of the memorabilia that was on display at the old stadium, so they are rotating everything out. They happened to have artifacts from the 80's on display- the '82 World Series trophy, one of Ozzie's Gold Gloves, and a Bruce Sutter jersey. I told Drew these were the Cardinals teams I grew up loving.

Then we got to visit one of the most public, but also most exclusive areas of the stadium- the field and the Cardinal's dugout. It was awesome to step onto the field, take in the view, and stand in the dugout where Tony LaRussa and the players stand. Drew was very excited, but I'm not sure he was able to grasp how cool it was to be there.

After the tour we still had a lot of time to spend before the game. We went and grabbed some food at a local wings establishment and then did some more sight seeing. Drew played in a fountain and then him and I went into the Old Courthouse, which he had been wanting to do since our visit last year. It was really cool in there the way they had the inside decorated with all the flags and other things. Drew wasn't as impressed once we got inside though I think. We stepped outside the other side and snapped some pictures of the Arch.

We finally went back to the stadium and got in line for the game. The promotion for the game was a Stan Musial Build-A-Bear in honor of his recent Medal of Honor presentation from President Obama. The running the bases after the game promotion was actually cancelled. Anyways we visited the family plaza and enjoyed free popsicles and got to visit with Fredbird. We then went to our seats and got ready for the game. The fans around us were again amazed at Drew's knowledge and enthusiasm for the game. We were also once again treated to a monster home run from Albert Pujols and another great game from the Cardinals. We stayed until about the 7th inning when the Cards had just about solidified the win before we hit the road. We made it back to Memphis around 3 AM. The family slept while Dad drove. It was definitely a great and special vacation that we will never forget.