Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Missouri

July 7, 2013

Following our first game of the trip in Kansas City, we drove down I-70 across the Show-Me State to reach St. Louis. After a night spent strolling around downtown and the Gateway Arch, we woke up extra early to reach a great promotion. The Cardinals offer “First Pitch Tickets,” which are available to the first 275 fans that visit Busch Stadium. The ticket windows open at 9:00 am, and the Cardinals offer a voucher for two tickets at the low price of just $11.20. The catch is, first you have to get to the stadium early, and then you don’t actually get your tickets until ten minutes before first pitch. That’s when you go to a designated gate, show your ID and voucher and get an envelope with two tickets that could be in the upper deck or very close to the field, but it’s a toss-up until you get them.

After we bought our voucher, we took the shuttle to tour the Anheuser Busch factory before the game. After the tour, the shuttle took us right back to Busch Stadium. Our tickets ended up being on the lower level in right field, but each set of two tickets were in different locations. Adrian sat by himself for awhile while my mom and I sat in the shade, thankfully.

Even during an afternoon game, Cardinal fans packed Busch Stadium. This was very clearly a baseball town that loves its Cardinals. During the 4th inning, Adrian and I walked to the top of the stadium to take a picture behind home, and a majestic view awaited us. The spectacular Gateway Arch stood in the distance among the skyscrapers of downtown St. Louis piercing the bright blue sky. After our climb, Adrian and I met our mom in left field, where we watched the end of the game in the sun.

Thanks to great defense and a Matt Holiday home run, the Cardinals hung on to beat the Miami Marlins 3-2. Looking back at that game, the starting pitcher for the Marlins was Jose Fernandez, so it’s crazy to realize we got to see him pitch before his tragic accident. Following the game, the Cardinals held their annual Christian Day, where players talk about Christian values. The guest speaker was Willie Robertson from Duck Dynasty, so Adrian made us stay so he could get a picture of him. While we waited, I sat on the floor of the concourse writing in my notebook about our day. Once Adrian got his picture, we made our way out of the stadium and out of St. Louis. Chicago, here we come!