ST. LOUIS – More than 44,000 fans are expected to attend the St. Louis Cardinals’ opening day, but there are some slight changes to the game this season.
The Cardinals will have two fewer home games since they’re playing as the home team in London later this summer against the Chicago Cubs. The team typically does about 60 theme nights, and this year is no exception, with added experiences and things to take home.
“Some of our old favorites are back, like Star Wars night and Grateful Dead night, and Margaritaville night, Blues night, and St. Louis CITY SC night,” said Bethany White, manager of theme tickets for the St. Louis Cardinals. “We do have some new ones like Yellowstone or Harry Potter, and there’s Emo night from the 2000s that will be a fun one.”
Three new food options are available at Mission Taco Joint, Shaquille O’Neal’s restaurant Big Chicken, and Freddy’s Frozen Custard and Steakburgers will be at the Busch Stadium.
The game will move along at a faster pace as a pitching clock will be used during the game. Your eyes won’t deceive you if the bases look bigger.
“The bases are three inches bigger, and there’s two goals in that,” said Matt Gifford, vice president of stadium operations for the St. Louis Cardinals. “Number one, they’ve seen injuries go down by 15% in base-related incidents. Then it also creates a better opportunity to steal. They saw attempts go up, and successful steals go up. So, it creates more action and more fun for the fans.”
