When last the Cardinals flocked to St. Louis at this time of year, Randy Arozarena had just been traded to Tampa Bay, Dylan Carlson was the team’s minor-league player of the year, the club had the reigning NL manager of the year, and Albert Pujols played under a halo in California.
In other words, “it’s been a minute,” to borrow from manager Oliver Marmol.
Oh, and he’s new since then, too.
After a three-year hiatus, the Cardinals will open a new year with an in-person fan festival, the 26th Winter Warm-up and first since January 2020.