ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ

When Willson Contreras got a call this past winter about a potential trade to the Red Sox, he took some time to look at Boston’s farm system, the roster they already had in the majors and what the Cardinals would be getting in return for a deal that involved him.

He liked what he saw. That led Contreras, 33, to waive his no-trade clause for a deal that returned the Cardinals three pitching prospects as they looked to put a rebuild in motion and sent the veteran slugger to a Red Sox club coming off a postseason appearance in 2025.

Once he saw shortstop Masyn Winn hampered after he was hit on the left leg by a sweeper from Red Sox starter Connelly Early in the third inning Friday night at Busch Stadium, Cardinals utilityman Thomas Saggese began to get ready knowing he could enter if Winn exited.

Saggese, who turned 24 years old on Friday, went into the Cardinals’ indoor batting cages to run, throw and take some swings to prepare himself. When the moment came, the birthday boy was quickly involved.

The Cardinals continued their early winning ways at home Friday with a 3-2 victory in the series opener vs. the Boston Red Sox at Busch Stadium.

Starting pitcher Dustin May recorded his best start as a Redbird.

Coming off a pair of rugged outings to begin his Cardinals career, starter Dustin May provided a quality start Friday night against his former team that handed a lead over to a Cardinals bullpen that did not budge.

After May was removed following six innings and two runs (one earned) allowed against the Red Sox, the Cardinals received a hold from Ryne Stanek in the seventh inning, an escape job by JoJo Romero in the eighth and a save from Riley O’Brien in the ninth to secure a series-opening, 3-2 win at Busch Stadium. Runs to take the lead over Boston were provided in the fifth inning from birthday boy Thomas Saggese, who singled in a run, and Jose Fermin, who produced a run on a sacrifice fly.

Heading into the MLB Draft last July after his lone season pitching for Tennessee, right-hander Tanner Franklin was unsure what might await him.

Franklin recalled hearing “so many things from so many different people.� He described the buildup as “hectic,� but was “trusting the Lord� for whatever was in store for him.

It sure looks like an epic era in the way St. Louis sports fans have watched the Cardinals and Blues on television over most of the past three decades is about to unceremoniously end.

The regional sports network model took foothold in the mid-’90s — first locally on Prime ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ before being followed by Fox ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Net, Fox ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Midwest, Bally ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Midwest and now FanDuel ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Network Midwest — and became a behemoth. But it is about to fade away, barring some miraculous unforeseen developments.

The Cardinals have debuted a new victory anthem for 2026 that blends new and old, and it seems to be a hit right down to the artist's love of toasted ravioli.

The new song played after every Cardinals win at Busch Stadium is a techno remix of the 1974 Lynyrd Skynyrd classic "Free Bird" by MOONLGHT, the stage name of Dutch-born DJ Stefan Schonewille. His version dives right into the guitar solo for which the song is best known.

The 413-foot rocket launched off the bat of Cardinals outfielder Jordan Walker on the final Sunday of spring training made you want to believe this might be his time, but recent seasons provided a dose of skepticism that tamped down any potential rejuvenation of the lofty expectations that once surrounded Walker.

After a successful challenge overturned a called third strike off the plate away, Walker quickly and violently — with an exit velocity of 111 mph — turned around a fastball left up over the heart of the plate by Houston Astros pitcher Cristian Javier for a home run in the final Grapefruit League game at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches.

WASHINGTON — Following two early at-bats where he had a chance to impact Wednesday’s game and did not, Jordan Walker ducked into the batting cage where he took some of the initial steps of this massive upswing in production.

The cage is located behind the visitors dugout at Nationals Park and outfitted with just what Walker needed while his teammates hit in the top of the third or fourth innings. He wanted to recalibrate his movements at the start of his swing, take some cuts against the pitching machine and gather momentum for his next plate appearance.

WASHINGTON — In a recent social media post, baseball broadcaster and reporter Dani Wexelman shared a photo of her interviewing Matthew Liberatore when he was a high schooler and juxtaposed it with a photo of her interviewing him this year as the Cardinals' opening day starter.

That is a great illustration of the arc of Wexelman's career telling baseball stories, from the backfields of Jupiter, Florida, covering amateur baseball and rising talents to front and center now with to capture what the club hopes is a rising team.