Why St. Louis Cardinals Baseball Needs The Chicago Cubs To Win: Local Businesses Speak Out


For St. Louis Cardinals baseball fans and downtown St. Louis store owners, Christmas just came early.

When the Chicago Cubs beat the Pittsburgh pirates in the NL wildcard tiebreaker game last night, both the St. Louis Cardinals baseball franchise and St. Louis’ business owners rejoiced. Many fans of Cardinals baseball are excited about a rare match-up between two heavily followed teams – the St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs. And St. Louis’ economy shareholders, from local business owners to managers of larger chain retailers, are confident that the series will result in a windfall for St. Louis’ economic well-being.

Wild Card Game - Chicago Cubs v Pittsburgh Pirates
Pitcher Jake Arrieta and other members of the Chicago Cubs celebrate on the mound after defeating the Pirates last night in Pittsburgh. [Photo via Jared Wickerham/Getty Images]
A postseason meeting between the Cubs and Cardinals baseball teams is long overdue. The teams have been rivals since they joined the same league in 1982, but, according to CBS Sports, they have never faced each other in postseason play. That’s right, not one time. So it is no wonder the fanbases of both teams, which are known for being two of the most loyal and passionate fanbases in baseball, are pumped.

“I think most baseball purists and St. Louis fans would agree a Cubs Cards series would be interesting,” writes a reporter for Fox 2 Now out of St. Louis.

“Win or lose, Cardinals fans say this weekend will definitely be electric in St. Louis.”

Not only that, but fans feel the St. Louis Cardinals might have more of an advantage against the Cubs than they would have against the Pirates, says KSDK.

One reason for this is that the Chicago Cubs players, for the most part, do not have much experience when in comes to playoff baseball. That may not seem significant, but the ability to deal with pressure can actually matter a lot in baseball’s postseason.

The other reason is very simple: statistically speaking, the Pirates players posed more of a threat. Their starting rotation and bullpen pitchers tended to perform better, and their hitting was generally stronger and more consistent.

It is for all of these reasons that the Cardinals have not fared too well against the Pirates as of late.

So the Cardinals baseball players are happy, and so are the Cardinals fans. St. Louis business owners also consider themselves extremely fortunate the Chicago Cubs came out on top last night, although not for the same reasons.

The business owners are predicting that the huge influx of fans they are sure will result from the series will significantly bolster their revenues, and they say that this would not so much be the case with a Pittsburgh match-up.

FOX points out that the distance between St. Louis, MO, and Chicago, IL, is only five hours compared to the nine and a half hour drive from Pittsburgh to the St. Louis Cardinals stadium. That in conjunction with the allure of the fabled postseason match-up and the large die-hard Cubs fanbase will certainly serve as incentive for plenty of Chi-Town’s baseball lovers to make the trip.

And the series will certainly attract a lot of fans from the opposing team; according to the St. Louis Convention and Visitors Commission, over 40 percent of the 3.5 million visitors to Cardinals stadium in the 2015 season were from out of town.

Furthermore, baseball fans love to spend money when they’re going to games, as anyone who has attended a major league baseball game can see by the huge number of vendors and the hordes of fans that frequent every area within a 10-block radius of the stadium for hours before each game.

A Cardinals fan buying a game program from a vendor outside of St. Louis's Busch Stadium before a World Series game. [Photo via Jamie Squire/Getty Images]
A Cardinals fan buying a game program from a vendor outside of St. Louis’s Busch Stadium before a World Series game. [Photo via Jamie Squire/Getty Images]
St. Louis economists think the Cardinals-Cubs series will draw in $5.9 million for St. Louis’ downtown for every game played at Cardinals stadium, all things considered.

St. Louis’ local government is very aware of the positive effects the drawing of more fans to the area of the park, even if those fans do not attend the game, could have. It is for this reason that they are setting up attractions to bring in non-ticket-holding fans. An example of such an attraction is the giant LCD board they are setting up in Ballpark Village, an area just outside St. Louis Cardinals stadium that the public can access for free.

Whose side are you on in this epic match-up? Are you psyched to see the Cubs and Cardinals competing in the playoffs at last? Leave your opinions below.

[Image via John Konstantaras/Getty Images]

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