ST. LOUIS, MO (KTVI - FOX2now.com)—
The gates to Busch Stadium swung open Wednesday night and it seemed to quench a six month long thirst for baseball in St. Louis, even if it wasn't the Cardinals on the diamond. It was the Missouri Tigers versus the Fighting Illini. And the feeling of baseball in the air has some in St. Louis saying opening days need to be holidays.You could see it in their college-aged eyes: a bit of a boyish glimmer. The young men on the University of Illinois and University of Missouri baseball teams were taking batting practice in the spot where their idols will play Monday.
"And when you see Busch Stadium behind the catcher and the umpire you're kinda like, 'OK this is for real.' So, I'm out here, trying to live in the moment. I think we all are," said Missouri pitcher Phil McCormick, who is from Wildwood.
And Illinois pitcher Mike Sterk admitted he was in awe. "Oh my first impression is that it's gigantic. Four levels of seats, skyboxes all the way around, it's incredible," he said. "You always think when you're younger, 'Man it would be so great if I could play in a major league stadium.' This isn't the exact circumstance you're thinking of, but I'll take what I can get."
Wednesday's game was a small teaser. Monday, the Cardinals come home. And one St. Louis based company hopes to start a trend. Switch, a creative marketing agency, is giving its 100 employees the day off, and trying to encourage Missouri's governor to give a day off to the entire state.
"We have actually sent a petition to Governor Nixon, via his website, asking for the proclamation," said CEO MIke O'Neill. An online petition can be signed at openingdayholiday.com. There is a link on fox2now.com. "Takes about 15 seconds to do it," said O'Neill. "Let's make it a real holiday so we don't have to make up stories."
