April 18 in Cardinals History

In a game (1925) that sees Rogers Hornsby score five runs, the Cardinals rout the Cubs, 20-5. Redbirds third baseman Les Bell leads the Wrigley Field 22-hit attack, compiling 12 total bases with a pair of home runs along with two doubles.

The Boston Braves purchased Johnny Beazley from the Cardinals in 1947.

In 1950, the first Opening Day game to be played at night, the Cardinals beat the Pirates at Sportsman’s Park, 4-2. Gerry Staley gets the win and Stan Musial homers in the St. Louis contest.

Tom Herr hits a game-winning home run (his first of the season) in 1987 and the fans celebrate by throwing their seat cushions on the field. It was Seat Cushion Give Away night at Busch.

 

Birthdays

Von McDaniel  (April 18, 1939 – August 20, 1995)   he was a rookie sensation at age 18 when, just days out of high school, he pitched a complete game, two-hit shutout for the St. Louis Cardinals in his first Major League start against the defending National League champion Brooklyn Dodgers on June 21, 1957. When the 1958 season began, he became inexplicably wild. He appeared in only two games for the Cardinals, and in two innings issued five walks, gave up three hits and three earned runs, and was dispatched to the Class B Carolina League. His final appearance in Major League Baseball occurred on May 11, 1958.

Chuck Taylor was born in 1942. On May 27, 1969, Taylor made his big league debut with the Cardinals. He was used both as a reliever and starter in his debut season, appearing in 27 games total, starting 13 of them, and posting a 7–5 won-loss record. His ERA was 2.56.

Mike Parisi born in 1983, he was drafted in the 9th round of the 2004 MLB draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. He made his MLB debut on May 5, 2008, at Coors Field against the Colorado Rockies. He pitched a scoreless inning of relief and his first career strikeout was against Matt Herges. He pitched in a total of 12 games for the Cardinals in 2008, with 2 starts. His ERA was 8.22 and he had 13 strikeouts and 15 walks. 

 

Debuts

Babe Adams 1906

Ducky Holmes 1906

Otto McIvor 1911

Hap Morse 1911

Tony DeFate 1917

Oscar Hartmann 1917

Earl Howard 1918

Ripper Collins 1931

Paul Dean 1934

Buster Mills 1934

Joe Orengo 1939

Buddy Blattner 1942

Emil Verban 1944

Eddie Kasko 1957

Bob Malone 1958

Joe Edelen 1981

Vince Coleman 1985

 

Deaths

Jack Stivetts 1930

Patsy O’Rourke 1956

John Antonelli 1990

Walter Sessi 1998