St. Louis Cardinals

1900-2013

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Year 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

St. Louis had the Red Stockings and Brown Stockings in the NL when it opened in 1876, but did not have a permanent franchise there until Chris von der Ahe brought his Browns in after the American Association disbanded in 1891. The Browns had dominated the AA for much of its existence; some say that he deliberately broke up the team after 1888 for the good of the league. The club did not do well in the NL at first. Renamed Cardinals in 1899 for the color of the trim on their uniforms, it was not until Branch Rickey became president of the team in 1916 that it began moving toward the great success that has characterized the franchise. He invented the farm system as we knowit today, which, combined with his great nose for talent, produced a steady flow of good ballplayers. It finally paid off in 1926, under manager Rogers Hornsby, as St. Louis won its first NL pennant and World Championship. They won again in 1928, and the Gas House Gang grabbed three more pennants in the early 1930s. The Cardinals, featuring a young slugger named Stan Musial, dominated the 1940s, winning four pennants and three World Championships.The Redbirds found new vigor in the 1960s as Bob Gibson's heroics on the mound and Lou Brock's daring on the bases led them to three pennants and two World Championships. Red Schoendienst was at the helm more than a dozen seasons, a record for Cardinal managers. Whitey Herzog restructured the team around speed and pitching, guiding them to three pennants and a World Championship in the 1980s. Through the end of the 1980s the Cardinals had won 14 pennants and more World Championships, nine, than any NL team.