Following Twitter while you watch a Cardinals game will either make you appreciate the game more or hate Twitter more. I was going through my ‘favorited’ tweets and I realized that probably too many of these were Cards-related. These are my top 5 favorite Cardinals tweets starting in mid-2011:
1. “So ur saying there’s a chance… #happyflight”–@dfreese23 (David Freese)
The date on that tweet is Aug. 24, 2011. Just take a second to think about where the Cardinals were on that day. A little over two months later, one of the most competitive, stressful World Series races to grace the MLB in recent history occurred. This tweet is also why I love the role of social media in sports. So many know Freese as the hero of Game 6. He became this sort of idol after this game, an untouchable baseball player. But Twitter let him also be the boy from Wildwood. The World Series meant something to Cardinals fans but, wait a second, it meant something more than money to the players too. An honorable mention tweet from David Freese on Sept. 19, 2011—“Let’s talk about double plays…na. Let’s talk about blown saves…nope. Let’s talk about a team that never bought into all that. #cards.”
2. “If you weren’t somewhere downtown last night, you missed seeing the happiest city in the world.” –@stlegotist (The St. Louis Egotist)
This was tweeted Oct. 29, 2011, which you might know as the day after Game 7 of the 2011 World Series. If you want to see a city coming together over sports—and you don’t have the option of getting out on the streets of the city to do so—Twitter is your next best bet. It’s almost easier to write 1000 words on this series but summing up the emotions of a city in 140 characters is a whole other challenge and the St. Louis Egotist nailed it.
3. “Find some provel cheese and a tape of the 2011 World Series. You’ll be just fine.” –@RallySTL (Rally St. Louis)
This tweet was a response to one of my tweets from mid-2012. I was studying abroad at the time and tweeted something about missing St. Louis. The team at Rally St. Louis responded with this gem. What makes any day better? A reminder of why we’re fans of this great team.
4. “No team has taken the phrase, “It’s not over till it’s over” more seriously than the St. Louis Cardinals.” –@espn
This tweet came during the 2012 NLDS Game 6 where the Cards were down 6-0 and it seemed like their WS bid was over. Any non-coast team has made their fair share of complaints over biased ESPN coverage. But for one of just a few times, it seems, Cardinals took center stage. And how could they not?
5. “Like all successful teams, the #stlcards are a family. It shows.” –@FYeahDFreese
If you’re a Cardinals fan, you know how this is. It kind of feels like wedding vows. Cardinals fans have vowed to be with the team and the players have vowed to be with each other in good times and bad, sickness and health, till death (or retirement) do them part. You see it on the field and in press conferences, the players’ tweets and how they play.
With all this in mind, please please please do not read Twitter while AT the game. It’s one thing to sit on your couch at home and scroll through Twitter while simultaneously watching the game. If you are sitting in Busch Stadium with the game happening LIVE, please put your phone away and catch up in three hours when the game is over. Everyone is attempting to tweet that they are at Busch Stadium so odds of you getting enough service to satiate the Twitter need are slim anyway.
