When I went to the Cards/Cubs game a couple weekends ago, I was introduced to their 2009 marketing campaign on billboards throughout the city, on signage in the stadium, and even on our tickets. The message is one simple phrase "Play Like a Cardinal" coupled with images of team greats, past and present.
I loved it, of course, but not just because I'm a fan but also because I'm interested in marketing. It's a clever phrase, especially when matched with visuals of franchise legends and phenoms and champions. It celebrates the best of the team, which is a positive message, but with a competitive undercurrent implying that playing like a Cardinal means playing better than all the other teams out there.
It's a great fit in particular for us Cardinals fans, who as a collective pride ourselves on being intelligent about and respectful of the game as a whole, and also fiercely proud of the history and legacy of our particular team and players. We are quite convinced - probably because we've heard it from so many Cardinals over the years - that players across the major league all know that St. Louis is one of the great places to play baseball, and that here they will play for the best fans in the game. We pretty much agree that any player wearing the birds on bats and Cardinal red understands exactly how privileged they are to play for our team. To fans, there could be perhaps no more fitting rally cry than that members of our team would "Play Like a Cardinal."
The centerpiece, which plays on the jumbotron in the stadium, is moving and inspiring and sooooo baseball-y. I love it, and want you to watch it now:
Anyway, all this to say that I was googling the phrase hoping for some good images to use in this blog when lo and behold I discovered that the ad agency responsible for the campaign also created a whole slew of commercials for the team! Apparently, digging a little further in my research, these "Play Like a Cardinal" mini-spots actually started during the 2008 season. One of the perils of being a fan transplanted to another city is that I never even knew about them until now. The spots are short, mostly quirky and sometimes funny, bordering on weird. A lot of people felt like they were too odd. But I kinda love them. You can click here to watch all the 2009 spots.
Now it is my solemn duty as a card-carrying member of the Yadier Molina fan club (not sure if such a thing really exists but if so SIGN ME UP) to share his two commercials. He's pretty much exactly this awesome.
...and the first half of this video (the second half is another one of the spots featuring FredBird).
This concludes your daily dose of hearing about what a rabid baseball fan I am. Thank for tolerating me.
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