Springfield Cardinals
| Springfield Cardinals | |||||
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| Minor league affiliations | |||||
| Class | Double-A (2005–present) | ||||
| League | Texas League (2005–present) | ||||
| Division | North Division | ||||
| Major league affiliations | |||||
| Team | St. Louis Cardinals (2005–present) | ||||
| Minor league titles | |||||
| League titles (2) |
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| Division titles (4) |
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| First-half titles (5) |
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| Second-half titles (5) |
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| Wild card berths (1) |
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| Team data | |||||
| Name | Springfield Cardinals (2005–present) | ||||
| Colors | Cardinal red, midnight navy blue, yellow, white | ||||
| Ballpark | Route 66 Stadium (2005–present) | ||||
Owner/ Operator | Diamond Baseball Holdings | ||||
| General manager | Dan Reiter[1] | ||||
| Manager | Patrick Anderson | ||||
| Media | Springfield Daily Citizen (online newspaper)[2] KRVI 106.7 FM (radio)[3] | ||||
| Website | mlb.com/milb/springfield | ||||
The Springfield Cardinals are a Minor League Baseball team based in Springfield, Missouri. They are members of the Texas League's North Division and serve as the Double-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals. The team plays their home games at Route 66 Stadium (formerly Hammons Field), which opened in 2004.
The Cardinals were established in 2005 after the El Paso Diablos relocated to Springfield following the 2004 season. They plan to rebrand with a new name and logo beginning with the 2027 season.
Springfield has won five first-half titles, five second-half titles, three division titles, and two Texas League championships (2012 and 2025).
History
[edit]Prior professional baseball in Springfield
[edit]Springfield, Missouri, has hosted professional baseball teams since as early as 1887, with the Southwestern League's Springfield Indians being the first to represent the city. Several other minor league baseball clubs followed, including the Reds (1902), Midgets (1903–1904, 1906–1909), Highlanders (1905), Jobbers (1911), Merchants (1920), and Red Wings (1931, 1934). These teams were generally Class C ball clubs in the Western Association. There were also several years when no team existed at all.[6]
In 1931, the St. Louis Cardinals purchased a minor league team, renamed it the Cardinals, and relocated it in Springfield. That year, the team won the first of several Western Association championships. With a front office led by future Hall of Famer Branch Rickey, Springfield also went to the playoffs in 1931, 1932, 1934, 1935, 1937, 1938, 1939, and 1941, and won league titles in 1931, 1932, 1934, 1937, and 1939.
Following the 1946 season, St. Louis moved the team to St. Joseph, Missouri, where it remained until 1953. The city of Springfield saw a brief re-emergence of minor league baseball when the rival Chicago Cubs moved its affiliate to Springfield for one season as the Springfield Cubs.
Though there was a gap of 63 years, most in the Springfield and St. Louis organizations consider the current Cardinals the same group which existed in 1932.[citation needed] Many pieces of fan apparel say "Springfield Cardinals circa 1932." The deck on top of the Cardinals dugout also has the championship banners from the 1930s and 1940s.
Cardinals (2005–2026)
[edit]The current team was established in 2005 as the Springfield Cardinals. The Texas League franchise was previously located in El Paso, Texas, where they were known as the El Paso Diablos. That team's owners sold the club to the St. Louis Cardinals and were then moved to Springfield as part of their minor league system, replacing the Tennessee Smokies, who had been St. Louis' Double-A affiliate from 2003 and 2004.
In 2012, the Cardinals qualified for the playoffs by finishing the second half of the season in first place in the Northern Division on the way to posting a division-best and franchise-high 77–61 record over the entire campaign. They went on to defeat the Tulsa Drillers, 3–2, in the best-of-five divisional playoff series, advancing to the championship series. Springfield defeated the Frisco RoughRiders, 3–2, best-of-five finals to win their first Texas League championship. Key players included Kolten Wong, Jermaine Curtis, Carlos Martinez, Trevor Rosenthal, Vance Albitz, Oscar Taveras, and Xavier Scruggs.
In conjunction with Major League Baseball's restructuring of Minor League Baseball in 2021, the Cardinals were organized into the Double-A Central.[7] In 2022, the Double-A Central became known as the Texas League, the name historically used by the regional circuit prior to the 2021 reorganization.[8]
On May 1, 2023, the Springfield Cardinals were sold by the St. Louis Cardinals to Diamond Baseball Holdings.[9]
Springfield won a second Texas League championship in 2025.
Rebrand (2027)
[edit]After playing as the Cardinals for 20 seasons, the team plans to rebrand with a new name and logo beginning with the 2027 season.[10]
Route 66 Stadium
[edit]
The Springfield Cardinals play at Route 66 Stadium, which has a capacity of 7,986 people plus approximately 2,500 more in general admission seating.[11]
Mascots
[edit]The Springfield Cardinals have two mascots. Their first and main mascot is a brightly colored red bird named Louie. He has been a mascot for the team since its formation in 2005. He is the "little brother" of Fredbird, mascot of the St. Louis Cardinals.[12] Their second mascot is a fluffy dog named Fetch. He is a fluffy beagle received by Louie as a birthday gift on Opening Day in 2006. During home games they can be found entertaining fans by tossing t-shirts and taking photos. Louie and Fetch also attend local events in the community.
Roster
[edit]| Players | Coaches/Other |
|---|---|
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Pitchers
Catchers
Infielders
Outfielders
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Manager
Coaches
60-day injured list
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References
[edit]- ↑ Rice, Melissa (June 20, 2017). "Gifford Promoted To St. Louis, Reiter Named New Springfield GM". Osarks First. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
- ↑ "Springfield Cardinals". Springfield Daily Citizen. Retrieved June 28, 2026.
- ↑ "Listen Live to the Cardinals". Springfield Cardinals. Retrieved June 28, 2026.
- ↑ "Cardinals TV Info". Springfield Cardinals. Retrieved June 28, 2026.
- ↑ "Cardinals TV Info". Springfield Cardinals. Retrieved June 28, 2026.
- ↑ "Springfield, Missouri Encyclopedia". Baseball-Reference. Sports Reference. Retrieved September 14, 2026.
- ↑ Mayo, Jonathan (February 12, 2021). "MLB Announces New Minors Teams, Leagues". Major League Baseball. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
- ↑ "Historical League Names to Return in 2022". Minor League Baseball. March 16, 2022. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
- ↑ Springfield Cardinals announce new ownership organization; will continue to be AA affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals https://www.ky3.com/2023/05/01/springfield-cardinals-announce-new-ownership-organization-will-continue-be-aa-affiliate-st-louis-cardinals/
- ↑ Yanagida, Cayli (September 13, 2026). "Lifelong Cardinals fans react to the last regular season game before rebranding". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved September 14, 2026.
- ↑ "Springfield Cardinals". Minor League Baseball. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
- ↑ "At Work: Louie". Springfield News-Leader. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
External links
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