The Wilmington Blue Rocks, down 2-0 in the third inning, were struggling to find some footing.

With runners on first and third, Blue Rocks hurler Leondy Perez would strike out Carolina Mudcats hitter Giovanny Urshella.  The runner on first, Tony Wolters, was attempting to steal second but was quickly dispatched by the Blue Rocks’ catcher, Kevin David.

Reacting to the play on the field, Mudcat runner Tyler Holt attempted to take advantage and score from third, only to get caught in a rundown and become the third of the inning and the play.

The Blue Rocks would ride the high of the triple play and go on to win the contest 9-2.

Courtesy of Sean Greene from local station WDEL, here is video of the fantastic defensive play.

Bill Ivie is the editor here at I-70 Baseball
He is the host of I-70 Radio, hosted every week on BlogTalkRadio.
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This time of year, you would be hard-pressed to find me as close to obsessed with any other external factors as I am with baseball. But one thing ranks right up there—tied for first, some might say—on holding my attention, and that is music. It is especially true on this day…Record Store Day. And while music and records are not often talked about on this or any baseball blog, I can very specifically connect my audiophile and baseball-obsessed personas through the 1982 St. Louis Cardinals.

The early 80s were a much simpler time. Video—the tape kind, not digital—was still relatively new technology, computers were for either the super rich or the super nerdy, and the news was delivered to you on a thing called paper, using real ink. Remember when you watched Back to the Future Part II, when Marty McFly got razzed by kids when he had to “use his hands” to play the video game in the 80s café? Well that essentially takes place now…and the stuff we had in the 80s is just as archaic as it was portrayed in that movie (seriously, go back and watch that movie…those writers were scary close on a lot of things). And although CD technology was around, records and cassettes were still the dominant home audio media.

The baseball experience was different, too. Not as many games were televised back then, because pay television was still relatively new; virtually no sports were broadcast on cable or satellite TV. So watching the game meant watching the network or an independent local station like KPLR. The main outlet for experiencing baseball as it happened from the comfort of home was to listen to the radio. St. Louis Cardinals fans were just about the most spoiled in all of baseball in the 80s. Not only did they get to root for one of the dominant teams of the decade as Whiteyball peaked at Busch Stadium, but they had Jack Buck and Mike Shannon to tell them all about it every night. Imagine listening to Buck describe the defense of Ozzie Smith, the fire of Joaquin Andujar, the speed of Willie McGee, and the dominance of Bruce Sutter every night. Throw in the folksy charm of, by then, seasoned broadcaster Shannon and it was like listening to baseball poetry flow through the walnut-enclosed speakers.

And that is where records come in, one in particular. I had just turned five years old when the Cards won it all in 1982 so I really lacked the appreciation that event deserved at the time. I know I watched the win from my grandmother’s house in Cahokia, IL, because my uncle drove the five minutes or so to Busch Stadium during Game 7 to get me a souvenir. I have no memory of any of this, but it’s a nice story to hear once in a while at Thanksgiving. And remember, this was the 80s. Buying the DVD collection of each game broadcast as a keepsake was not an option. No, in those days, if you wanted to relive an event like this, you bought a record album. And the Cardinals released “Busch Beer Presents: Celebration” to commemorate the win. My dad bought a copy, and I loved listening to dad’s records as a kid.

“Celebration” is a full-length album, narrated by Buck, containing radio broadcast highlights from the regular season on side one and NLCS and World Series highlights on side two. It is truly the soundtrack to my introduction to Cardinal Baseball and all that was great about it in the 80s.

First and foremost, Buck’s narration is superb. It’s kind of like listening to your grandpa read you your favorite bedtime story. And the highlights are gem after gem of broadcast excellence, too. Maybe I have just listened to the album so many times the words are burned into my brain like Bible stories from Catholic School or the lyrics to my favorite songs. But I can hear the inflections and excitement in my head just thinking about the recording. “Not many picked the Cardinals to win it all in 1982,” states Buck to start the album on side one. And the end of side two, of course, culminates with a line nearly every Cardinals fan knows by heart: “Sutter from the belt, to the plate…a swing and a miss! And that’s a winner! That’s a winner! A World Series winner for the Cardinals!”

My dad also has the record from the Cardinals’ 1967 championship season. Historically, that one is just as significant for those that want to hear what it was like to have both Buck and Harry Caray at the mic for the Cards. But that didn’t really interest me as a kid; all of it happened too long ago (though I appreciate it much more now). “Celebration” was full of players and broadcasters I knew and loved, even if I didn’t quite remember the events when they first happened. It was a regular in the rotation when I was allowed control of the turntable.

The album is long out of print, I’m sure. I doubt it was ever released on CD, and I have yet to find it on iTunes. Occasionally, I stumble across the LP at the flea market or a yard sale. So “Celebration” truly is one of those rare pieces of Cardinals history that I love knowing so well. But while I wake up early to buy more records at local indie stores, you can rest easy knowing modern technology has not totally let us down.

There are six parts in total. Happy Record Store Day, and Go Cards.

Chris Reed is a freelance writer who also appears on InsideSTL Mondays and Bird Brained whenever he wants. Follow him on Twitter @birdbrained

From the webpages of BaseballDigest.com, I bring to you one of my earliest articles for the website. Originally published on March 23, 2009, this quickly became one of the most read and shared articles on the young website, which was not officially live to the public as of yet. It was one of my favorite pieces I ever wrote, and I share it with you, my I-70 readers, on a Cardinal day off in August. It is republished here with permission from BaseballDigest.com and has been edited for current content.

Last season (2008) the St. Louis Cardinals reached an agreement to bring baseball broadcasts back to the NBC affiliate in St. Louis, KSDK Channel 5. They also announced that they would be re-vamping the broadcast teams on TV.

Many people were excited by the prospect of the broadcasts moving back “home” to the local station that aired games previously. Almost immediately the debate in St. Louis began over who would get the nod to call the games. Eventually it was announced that the voice of Cards games on KSDK, Jay Randolph, would return. He would be joined by young broadcaster Rick Horton who would also take over much of the TV work on Fox Sports Midwest. Over the course of 2008 I realized something more than I had in the past….

I miss Jack Buck….

There was a level of class to the game when you listened to Jack. It was personal and professional and amazing. When on the radio, he made you feel like you were there. On television, you felt like he was sitting in the room with you. He single handedly immortalized moments in our minds. There are days, moments, plays, and events that I will never forget. What he made amazing about those moments was that you don’t just remember the vision of that point in time in you life, we have a soundtrack that plays behind it in our minds. There was a certain something to everything that Jack said. There was an emotion behind it like no other. He made you believe.

I think the summer of the home run chase solidified this in my mind. I remember wondering who would be in the booth for the historic home runs. What would any of the announcers have to say? I remember Shannon’s call on 61 “heading for Planet Maris” and feeling that it was very scripted. I remember Joe Buck calling 62 on Fox and feeling like it was a bit bland, with the exception of him reminding Mark to touch first base. But Jack, man Jack had a way of making you say “wow”. Jack’s request to “pardon me while I stand and applaud” was classic, respectful, and that of a pure emotion. It may have been scripted, but it was perfect for the situation.

One of my earliest memories is being told to “Go Crazy” with the rest of St. Louis. I can honestly say that I realized just how special a situation was when I heard Jack say “I can’t believe what I just saw” as Kirk Gibson hobbled around the bases. I remember sitting on the edge of my seat as baseball returned from the tragedy of 9/11 and listened to Jack as he read his own words.

I know that the announcers for the Cardinals will never come close to what Jack had to offer. This is no slight on their abilities, it is just fact.

While I accept this as fact and I fully appreciate it, it’s a shame to realize that. It’s a shame to realize that my son won’t “see” the game on the radio the way I did.

So, take a few minutes and remember Jack Buck this spring. Go down to the Yard known as Busch III and stop by his statue. Listen to a few of his famous calls. Sit and reminisce about a true American poet, a classy individual and a respectful man. And, while you’re there….

Go Crazy, Folks, Go Crazy….