May I introduce to you the St. Louis Cardinals, the greatest baseball team in the MLB and the world.
However, it is not only this stellar team that led me to Busch Stadium in St. Louis, but the skyline that Busch proudly accentuates in the background. It provides a view of the Gateway Arch, the Old Courthouse, and buildings such as Met Life, AT&T and Bank of America that create a spectacular night time skyline visible for everyone to enjoy along with a baseball game. All of this is available for a relatively low price (unless you want a seat close up).
But before you understand the importance of the skyline in connection with the stadium, you must first understand why baseball (and all professional sports) became popular. The reason is pretty simple; the games were cheap and entertaining. As the 1800's came to an end the sprawling new cities created new patterns of recreation and leisure. The congestion and disease of city life led many people to seek participation in outdoor recreation. People sought places within the city to escape the tenements, factories and offices, so they turned to parks where others had set up croquet or tennis clubs.
In short, the excitement of rooting for the home team united all fans. So not only were they getting inexpensive entertainment (and most of the time free as you can see in the picture above. Man, can you imagine the World Series being a
free game?), an escape from reality and a passion that they could pursue, but more importantly this all took place in an environment where they were equal to the upper class: their bosses -- the Rockefellers, the Mellons and the Carnegies.
When I went to watch the Cardinals, earlier this year, I noticed that outside the stadium tickets were being sold for a relatively good price that dropped as time went by. As we enjoyed the game, we naturally began socializing with the fans sitting around us and discussed our common interest: the Cardinals, hunting, etc. This was especially interesting when I realized that the the
family sitting behind me was an inner-city family and in front of me sat a family from an upper-middle class suburb. After the game, as I walked through the stadium, I ran into a mass of people from all different social standings, ethnicities, and (probably) financial statuses, the perfect example of unintended social integration.
I was with my dad, and it was an extremely exciting and entertaining game. The Cardinals were trailing the entire game by two when the home-town hero, Albert Pujols, stepped up to the plate with two outs and drove in two runs to send the game into extra innings. All this entertainment for only $20!
As sports have grown up they have not only kept this connection with all social classes, but have grown even more intimate and essential to the city and the people, serving as symbols of their respective cities. It became quite clear to me the other night when the announcer of the game stated, "The city of St.Louis can sleep sound tonight," after the Cardinals beat the Phillies to tie the NLDS 2-2. This was just a sign that teams such as the Cardinals are not just economically tied into the life of the city, but emotionally and symbolically tied to it. When someone talks about a team, they always use the name of the city, for example: Tampa Bay beat Boston. The pride that people experience from a team winning is akin to nationalism -- people live and die by
EVERYTHING that I hold near and dear to my heart, that makes me who I am, that signifies all that I believe in...."
In a recent Chrysler commercial (this link will bring you to YouTube) where they flash various symbols of the Detroit, (at 0:48) they show a man wearing the Detroit Tigers baseball shirt. It is just another example of how sports team are symbols of their cities.
Many stadiums are tied in with the city that they represent. The most recognizable symbol of St. Louis, the Gateway Arch, is emblazoned across the outfield (as seen in the picture to the right). In some cities the stadium is an integral part of downtown. I snapped this picture as our plane curved around downtown St. Louis. As you can see, Busch Stadium is a large part of the downtown with the Rams football stadium, the Edward D. Jones Dome, on the other
feel that the teams represent the city.
One can see all of this (the social classes coming together and a team symbolizing of the city) in the article A Fan's Perspective: What the New York Yankees Mean to Me. He talks about how during 9/11 he felt as if the city rested on the weight of its sports teams. He remembers seeing the "Mayor of America," Rudy Giuliani sitting with the masses and cheering on his favorite team.
The picture of Busch Stadium, at the top of the post, offers more than just a scenic view. It is the perfect symbol of how a team can symbolize a city, can bring together all social classes and can give them all equal entertainment and common ground -- it is a symbol to the fans of all the city has to offer.
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Now here is a cool
progression of the Cardinals' ballparks through the ages
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Robinson Field in 1907 (1893-1920) (an amusement park used to stand right
outside the park)
Sportsman Park in 1920 (1920-1966)
Busch Stadium in 2005 (1966-2005)
New Stadium can be seen at top of the post.
I love how your discussion here, especially about the importance of cheap entertainment in the form of baseball for poor, working immigrants in US cities earlier in the century. While you are right that some ballparks still have that urban, egalitarian vibe, others are less so. Growing up in Maryland the then Bullets and Capitols played in a suburban park well outside the city. While those teams have moved to downtown Washington, the Redskins have moved out.
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