There are two 'departments' of baseball history. World Series champions, home run totals, consecutive games played and the numbers of the game which are so important to comparing eras and weaving the fabric of the game of baseball over nearly a century and a half make up one side of the sport's history. The other, that which gives us the narrative we pass down to our children in hopes of making them, too, fall in love with the annual marathon we endure is that of moments. These moments help us illustrate the greatness of a player, the importance of an event and sometimes to show that no matter how many games you watch, you are bound to come across something you've never seen before. Today's post is one of those moments.
By pure happenstance I was watching some WGN clips someone had given me a long time ago and found a video I apparently gave no thought to. Expanding the scope of this blog to include more mid-1970's content, I ignored a video about the 1974 Cubs. This, apparently, was a huge mistake on my part because in it we get to see the height of the 'Mad Hungarian' persona and the Cubs being, well...the Cubs.
Happy New Year to all. This week, I'll be posting a few clips of 1971 St. Louis Cardinals broadcast footage. I will preface this as saying that MLB has already informed me that these come from highlight videos and that actual full game broadcasts do not exist. That's their official statement, take it for what it's worth.
First up, we have a clip of "Lefty" Steve Carlton at Wrigley Field. Before we get into other stuff, let's nail down a few parameters. First off, the two Cardinals in this clip are Joe Torre and Steve Carlton. Both were on the team together from 1969-1971. Furthemore, per uniwatch, the St. Louis Cardinals switched to the pullover tops that Torre and Carlton are both wearing for the first time in the 1971 season. So while Torre was with the Cardinals through the 1974 Season, Steve Carlton painfully was not.
With that in mind, let's get into the action.
