ST. LOUIS (AP) — St. Louis Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol believes in the “no shirt, no problem” mantra.
His club was boosted to a win over the Royals Friday night and again on Saturday by a group of college players in the right-field seats who took off and waved their shirts as they sang, chanted and drew others into the fray.
Marmol loved it so much that he bought tickets for shirtless revelers this weekend.
“Last night’s atmosphere was electric. Let’s run it back this weekend,” Marmol said in a social media post. “I’ll buy tickets for fans who want to sit in the right field Loge and bring the energy.”
It all began when the Stephen F. Austin club baseball team, known as the Lumberjacks, was in nearby Alton, Illinois, for the National Club Baseball Division II World Series. The Cardinals offered tickets to the team, and 17 players attended.
By the time Yohel Pozo hit a walk-off single in the 11th inning, the Lumberjacks had other fans — and even the mascot Fredbird — joining in on the ruckus.
“Whoever started that in right field, I’ll do whatever I need to do to make sure they come every game,” Marmol said Friday night. “Because that was awesome. Not only them, but everybody that showed up today. That was a fun environment.”
The college players were back Saturday, when they shouted Marmol’s name numerous times along with “M-V-P!” when Jordan Walker came to bat. Other fans in the stadium joined in on the fun.
“I heard it pretty clear,” Marmol said. “Welcome back to Busch. It was cool to see them back. The environment was awesome. We feed off that.”
Will he keep buying tickets?
“I’ll go broke,” Marmol quipped.
The “tarps off” trend — celebrating by taking a shirt off and waving it — is not new to sports, but it was to Busch Stadium.
Friday night’s fans may have inadvertently created a new tradition.
The fans sang soccer chants and shouted players’ names. The stadium organist, Dwayne Hilton, played accompanying music and got everyone involved.
The party had grown to multiple sections by the 11th inning.
“It creates an environment where, it’s not only filling this place up, it’s making it a tough place for other teams to come in and play,” Marmol said Friday. “That was pretty damn cool. I’ll sign up for that, any day.”
The Cardinals said Marmol bought right-field tickets for both games this weekend, and all of them were snapped up by Saturday afternoon.
The Lumberjacks returned to Busch Stadium after a come-from-behind 9-8 win over Stony Brook earlier in the day.
St. Louis beat Kansas City 4-2 on Saturday and the Cardinals rewarded the Lumberjacks, who were given swag bags of hats and shirts.
They also were invited into the clubhouse and Marmol’s office after the game. Several Cardinals posed for photos with them and some even gave away bats and baseballs.
Masyn Winn, who is in his third full season, marveled at the energy in the stadium.
“I’ve never been in a playoff but this was a playoff atmosphere,” Winn said. “It’s hard not to have fun when the fans are like that. We’ve got the best fans in the world but it seems like the younger generation makes it more like a college atmosphere. I think it’s good for the game.”
Freshman pitcher Caleb Cummings, of League City, Texas, couldn’t believe his good fortune.
“I don’t even know what to say,” Cummings said. “It’s the coolest thing that’s ever happened to me. We’re in the clubhouse. It’s just crazy.
“The Cardinals are a great organization and led by a great manager.”
Cummings is a St. Louis fan now.
“I didn’t think I’d ever switch. I’m a diehard Astros fan but man, the Cardinals just showed me so much this weekend,” Cummings said.
The college crew may be back Sunday, but they have their own game to play at 7 p.m.
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