June 2, 1952 – Sal Maglie heads for the visitors clubhouse at Sportsman’s Park after being pinch hit for in the 6th inning on 6/2/52 with the Giants trailing St. Louis 5-4. The Cards held the one-run lead, handing Sal his first loss after 9 straight victories.
The Cards trade lefty Max Lanier and OF Chuck Diering to the Giants for 2B Eddie Stanky, who becomes the team’s player-manager.
June 1, 1949 – Home plate umpire Scotty Robb calls Jackie Robinson safe as the Brooklyn Dodgers to take on the St Louis Cardinals at Ebbets Field. Jackie scored all the way from 1st on Gil Hodges hit to center field in the 3rd inning. The throwback to the infield eluded the Cards 1st baseman…
1949 – The St. Louis Browns, owners of Sportsman’s Park, move to evict the St. Louis Cardinals in order to gain a rent increase.
To get a rental increase from their Sportsman’s Park’s tenants, the Browns move to evict the Cardinals. The Redbirds accuse the owners of breaking the lease, and as the season approaches, it is uncertain where the National League team will play its home games.
1949 – Fred Saigh buys out the interest of Robert Hannegan and now controls 90 percent of the St. Louis Cardinals’ stock. Saigh and Hannegan had swung the deal in 1947 with only $60,300 in cash in a $4 million deal. Hannegan comes out with $866,000 profit in two years.
St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Ted Wilks loses his first game in 77 consecutive appearances dating back to September 8, 1945. Wilks posted a 12-0 record during the streak which included four starts.
On March 30, 1948, Murry Dickson of the St. Louis Cardinals achieves a rarity: a spring training no-hitter. Dickson shackles the New York Yankees, becoming the first pitcher to throw a nine-inning no-hitter in spring training. Prior to Dickson, two no-hitters had taken place in the spring, but both were shared by more than one…
Cardinals outfielder Stan Musial ends his holdout, signing a contract for $31,000, the same salary he made last season. ‘Stan the Man,’ after being assured by new owners Robert Hannegan and Fred Saigh that his salary will be increased based on his performance, gets a pay raise of $5,000 when he is hitting .403 at the All-Star break, en route to being named the National League’s MVP.
1947 – Sam Breadon sells the St. Louis Cardinals empire to Robert Hannegan and Fred Saigh. The price is in excess of $4 million with the new owners getting the Cardinal players, physical assets, 16 minor league franchises, $2.1 million in reserve funds and payment on a new ballpark site, four minor league parks, and the lease on Sportsman’s Park. Breadon had first acquired an interest in the Cardinals in 1917 and bought control in 1920 for an investment of $350,000.
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