St. Louis Cardinals honor Red Schoendienst for 70 Years in Baseball

The St. Louis Cardinals are honoring Hall of Fame second baseman and manager Red Schoendienst‘s 70 Years and counting in Major League Baseball.

On this date in 1945, the Germantown, Ill. native made his Major League debut with the Cardinals afters signing a contract as an amateur free agent in 1942. The Cardinals were taking on the Chicago Cubs when Red made his debut. The future Hall of Fame second baseman had a 1-for-4 day at the plate with a run scored. His sole hit that day was a triple as he filled in for left fielder Stan Musial. To pay tribute, the Hall of Famer will be honored during a special pre-game ceremony before the Cardinals take on the Cincinnati Reds. In addition, fans are encouraged to share videos on social media and demonstrate their affection for Red by using the hashtag #LoveRed2

“We want to mark this amazing milestone by letting Red know how much he means to the entire Cardinals family,” Cardinals President Bill DeWitt III said in a statement. “We encourage fans to join us in showing their affinity, affection and appreciation for number two as he celebrates seventy years and counting in Major League Baseball.”

Fans are asked to join players, broadcasters, and team officials in taping these messages. The videos can be shared on Twitter Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, or Vine using the aforementioned hashtag. More information can be found here.

The Hall of Famer will be joined by his family tonight during the pre-game ceremony. Players throughout Major League Baseball have sent in congratulatory video messages and the Cardinals will be wearing a commemorative number 2 “70 Years in Uniform and Counting” patch on their sleeve as well.

As a Cardinal, Red ranks fourth in at-bats (6,841) and pinch hits (54), fifth in games played (1,795), sixth in runs scored (1,025) and hits (1,980), seventh in doubles (352), and eighth in total bases (2,657).

Serving as a coach on the 1964 World Championship team, Schoendienst was named manager following the resignation of Johnny Keane. The Cardinals won the World Series in 1967 over the Boston Red Sox and returned the next season only to fall to Al Kaline and the Detroit Tigers. Red had a 12-year tenure as the skipper. Until Tony La Russa passed him in 2008, Red had been the longest-serving Cardinals manager. Currently, he ranks second as a Cardinals manager with 1,041 wins.

Elected by the Veterans Committee to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989, Red’s #2 jersey would be officially retired in 1996. An inaugural member of the Cardinals Hall of Fame in 2014, Red currently serves the Cardinals as as a special assistant to the General Manager.

St. Louis Cardinals honor Red Schoendienst for 70 Years in Baseball

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