Seeking to One-Up Cubs, Cardinals’ Scoreboard-Pointing Goes from Metaphorical to Actual

You may have heard by now that the Cardinals have won a few games over the course of their storied history. It’s enough to instill in them a certain superiority complex, certainly when it comes to their snakebit division rivals from Chicago. As such, Cardinals fans are wont to do a little scoreboard-pointing now and again just to remind the Cubs where they stand in the grand scheme of a heliocentric baseball model in which St. Louis is the sun. And here I thought it was hot there because of the city’s proximity to hell. Silly me.

In any case, those flaunting fingers found themselves less able to point to either the present or the future as the season went on. And during trips to Wrigley, many found themselves directing their attention to the state-of-the-art videoboard in left field and saying, “Whoa, check that out!” The Cards were able to watch their NLDS defeat in HD in all the beautiful, technicolor glory afforded by 4,300 square feet of anachronistic awesomeness.

I know we like to tweak the BFIB for their unrepentant self-importance and their unwillingness to accept that anyone else might be doing something better than them, but it’s not a fans-only perspective. The Cardinal Way permeates the entire organization, as well it should. I give them grief — and I’ll continue to, for that matter — but the Cardinals do have a track record worthy of a fair bit of pride. And as recent construction proves, that pride extends beyond the product on the field and to the accoutrements of the ballpark as well.

As Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com wrote, the team got a little miffed over more than just the outcome of the season-ending series with the Cubs.

The videoboard in center field, as well as the smaller out-of-town scoreboard alongside it, has already been removed, leaving behind exposed framework. Coming soon will be two new HD LED scoreboards that will be completely programmable for video. The old scoreboard, which was flanked by amber boards, was not entirely video capable. It also was not HD compatible.

As a result, the new main videoboard will be almost three times bigger in size, with twice the resolution and brightness of the old board. The out-of-town scoreboard will be about 2.5 times bigger, also with twice the resolution and brightness of the previous one.

“We’ll be right up there with the best of them now,” said Joe Abernathy, vice president of stadium operations for the Cardinals. “It’s amazing how technology has evolved in 10 short years. Technology has progressed considerably since we put this in back in April 2006.

“But we did get upset actually when the Cubs had a better videoboard than us. Especially with how it ended [in the National League Division Series] and all they’re doing now, we don’t want to be sitting behind the Cubs in anything.”

Let me translate that a little: Sorry about missing out on Price, Heyward, Lackey, et al., but hey, we got you a cool new videoboard!

Okay, so maybe this isn’t a direct reaction to the relatively disappointing offseason the Redbirds have had thus far. It’s more fun to think of it that way though, so I’m going to labor under that assumption because it makes me smile. Really though, I think there is something to the notion that they realize the Cubs are no longer just a stone underfoot or a thorn in the side of the juggernaut.

If I can break character for just a bit here, I have to say that I’ve always thoroughly enjoyed attending games in St. Louis. With a few exceptions, the fans there have been really courteous and I’ve had some great conversations about the Cubs/Cards rivalry and the game and season at hand at the time. That said, I do think it’s a great idea to further upgrade in the in-game experience, which is what the new videoboards aim to do.

The Cardinals are also installing “full-blown Wi-Fi that will enhance the Wi-Fi signal throughout the ballpark,” specifically when it comes to handling the spike in usage during games. Say what you will about tradition and old-school baseball, but it’s pretty cool that St. Louis-area sorority girls can now take and post selfies without the annoying delay they’ve experienced in the past. What’s more, anyone else who’s serious about the game and just wants to interact or to get more in-depth info than what they can find at the ballpark can now do so reliably.

I applaud the Cardinals for taking steps to improve across multiple levels and I love that they’re admittedly playing catch-up with the Cubs. Now I just hope they have to continue doing the same on the field as well.