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The Cardinal Chronicle St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurIs There Hope on the way for Cardinals Broadcasts?For generations across the Midwest, following the St. Louis Cardinals was simple.You turned on the television in the evening, found the game, and settled in for a few hours of baseball. Whether you lived in St. Louis, southern Illinois, Arkansas, or a small farm town somewhere across Cardinal Nation, the ballgame was there waiting for you.Lately, that simple tradition has become anything but simple.Fans have found themselves chasing games across cable packages, satellite providers, streaming platforms, and shifting broadcast agreements. Some longtime followers — especially those in rural areas without reliable internet — suddenly find themselves unable to watch the team they’ve supported for decades.The frustration is real. But there may actually be a reason for cautious optimism.For years, Major League Baseball relied heavily on regional sports networks to broadcast local games. These networks paid teams large rights fees and distributed games through cable and satellite television.That system worked well when cable subscriptions were strong.But as millions of households cut the cord, the financial foundation of those networks began to weaken. The collapse and restructuring of several regional sports networks has forced Major League Baseball to confront a difficult reality: the old system is no longer stable.Sometimes disruption is exactly what it takes to force progress.Over the past few seasons, Major League Baseball has already taken steps toward a different model. In situations where broadcast partners could no longer carry games, the league stepped in and produced the broadcasts itself.That move may offer a glimpse into the future of St. Louis Cardinals broadcasts.There is growing belief around the sport that MLB could eventually centralize the production and distribution of local games. Under such a system, the league could handle the broadcasts while teams retain their local announcers and branding.More importantly, fans might finally gain a consistent and reliable way to watch their team.If baseball continues to moves in that direction, the goal should be straightforward: make the game easy to find again.A modern system could allow fans to access games through multiple options at once - streaming services, cable and satellite providers, and potentially even local over-the-air stations.That kind of hybrid approach would acknowledge an important truth about baseball’s audience. Not every fan lives in a major city with high-speed internet. Many of the sport’s most loyal supporters live in rural communities where traditional television still matters.For the Cardinals in particular, that reality cannot be ignored. Their fan base stretches across the Midwest in a way few teams can match. Cardinals baseball belongs just as much to small towns and farming communities as it does to downtown St. Louis.For decades, baseball grew because it was accessible. Families listened on the radio while working in the fields. They watched games on simple television sets after supper. The ballclub was part of everyday life.If the current broadcast shakeup leads baseball back toward that kind of accessibility, it may ultimately prove to be a blessing in disguise.The system is clearly changing. The hope is that what replaces it will better serve the fans who have supported the game the longest.Because at the end of the day, the goal should be simple.Make it easy for fans to find the Cardinals again.

Is There Hope on the way for Cardinals Broadcasts?

This Date in Baseball History — March 7, 1991 Remembering "Cool" Papa Bell &nbsp;On March 7, 1991, baseball lost one of the fastest men ever to step on a diamond when Hall of Famer Cool Papa Bell passed away in St. Louis at the age of 87. Though generations of fans never saw him play in person, his legend had already been firmly stitched into the fabric of the game.<figure id="figure-gg7u0czj9vmmgl606i"><img id="gg7u0czj9vmmgl606i" src="https://cdn.durable.co/blocks/20ZmZZjHiYDCRGcBhUvmzgGklaWxl9x8JJ8TGgQ1HuO4VC9PP2KilRdyEgjl3d8U.jpg" alt="" title="" class="object-cover bg-gray-100 " style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;" data-corners="default" data-aspect="16:9" data-caption="" data-positionx="undefined" data-positiony="undefined" data-fullwidth="false" data-mce-src="https://cdn.durable.co/blocks/20ZmZZjHiYDCRGcBhUvmzgGklaWxl9x8JJ8TGgQ1HuO4VC9PP2KilRdyEgjl3d8U.jpg" data-mce-style="aspect-ratio: 16/9; object-position: center center;"></figure>Bell spent parts of 21 seasons in the Negro Leagues, starring from 1922–1937 and again from 1943–1946. Much of his career brilliance came with the powerhouse St. Louis Stars, where his blazing speed, elite defense, and disciplined hitting made him one of the league’s most feared leadoff men.Stories of Bell’s speed became part of baseball folklore. Teammates and opponents alike claimed he was so fast he could flip off a light switch and be in bed before the room got dark. While the exaggerations grew with time, the truth behind them remained clear—few players in baseball history possessed the kind of game-changing speed Bell displayed.During his career he was selected to eight Negro League All-Star Games, routinely ranking among the league’s best hitters while covering enormous ground in center field. His impact went beyond statistics; he was known for his professionalism, intelligence, and leadership in the clubhouse.Recognition eventually came on baseball’s biggest stage. In 1974, Bell was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame, cementing his place among the legends of the sport and helping ensure the achievements of Negro League players would not be forgotten.St. Louis later honored its historic star in a lasting way. In 2002, a statue of Bell was unveiled outside Busch Stadium II, standing as a tribute to one of the city’s greatest baseball figures and a reminder of the rich Negro League history that once thrived there.Today, more than three decades after his passing, Cool Papa Bell’s name still travels through baseball circles like a fast runner down the line. His career reminds us that greatness in the game is not measured only by the records we can verify, but also by the legends that endure long after the final inning is played.Even in a sport built on numbers, some players move so fast they outrun the statistics—and Cool Papa Bell may have been the fastest of them all.

Remembering "Cool" Papa Bell

Restoring the Foundation—The Cardinal WayFor decades, the St. Louis Cardinals didn’t just outplay the competition on the diamond; they out-thought them on the backfields. It was the "Cardinal Way"—a proprietary blend of teaching, discipline, and developmental consistency that turned anonymous farmhands into World Series heroes. But in recent years, that gap narrowed. The once-mighty St. Louis pipeline began to show signs of rust, and the organizational identity felt adrift.Enter the 2026 "New Era." With the previous front-office regime now in the rearview mirror, the Cardinals have staged a quiet but massive revolution in Jupiter. Under the direction of Chaim Bloom, the most significant addition to the organization isn't a high-priced free agent—it is a small army of teaching personnel. The club has hired over 70 new coaches, scouts, and player development specialists, a deliberate investment designed to restore the structural advantages that made St. Louis a perennial powerhouse.This isn't about "modernizing" for the sake of trends; it’s about a return to the meticulous, high-touch teaching that defined the George Kissell era. Walking through the complex in Jupiter, you see a "no-distraction" zone where young prospects like JJ Wetherholt and Quinn Mathews are being mentored with a level of intensity not seen in years. From doubled roving instructors to specialized pitching labs, the Cardinals are ensuring that no prospect falls through the cracks.The goal is to move away from the "one-size-fits-all" approach and return to the individualized development that identifies a player’s "Grind" early. By flooding the system with expertise, Bloom is betting that the Cardinals can once again out-develop the competition.For the fans, the message is clear: The foundation is being poured again. If the Cardinals are to return to the summit of the National League, it will be because these 70 new architects of the game have restored the "Cardinal Way" to its rightful place as the gold standard of baseball. Image AI generated - Cardinal Chronicle

Restoring the Foundation - the Cardinal Way

The Cardinal Chronicle St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurQuinn Mathews Shows Electric Stuff in Spring Tune-Up&nbsp;Left-hander Quinn Mathews turned in one of the most encouraging pitching performances of the Cardinals’ spring on Thursday, striking out seven over 2.2 innings against the Pittsburgh Pirates.Mathews allowed two runs — only one earned — on two hits, but the raw numbers only tell part of the story. The young lefty displayed the kind of swing-and-miss stuff that has quietly made him one of the more intriguing arms in the Cardinals’ pipeline.Working with confidence, Mathews averaged 95.2 mph with his four-seam fastball and generated 12 whiffs on just 50 pitches, an impressive rate against big-league hitters. Just as encouraging, he did not issue a walk, attacking the strike zone and trusting his stuff.The only real damage came in his final inning when a defensive miscue by Nolan Gorman extended the frame before Mathews surrendered a home run. Even with that blemish, the outing represented a significant step forward for the left-hander after a pair of shakier appearances earlier in camp.For a young pitcher working toward consistency, this was the kind of outing that builds confidence — and gets the attention of the coaching staff.Mathews is expected to open the 2026 season in the Triple-A Memphis rotation, continuing his development as a starting pitcher. But performances like Thursday’s serve as a reminder that the distance between Memphis and St. Louis can sometimes be very short.In fact, if the Cardinals find themselves needing a starter during the season, Mathews could very well be one phone call — and one sore arm in the rotation — away from making his major-league debut.For now, the Cardinals will likely let him continue building innings in Memphis. But after Thursday’s showing, one thing is clear:Quinn Mathews has the kind of stuff that can force a conversation sooner rather than later.

Mathews Shows Electric Stuff in Spring Tune-Up

The Cardinal Chronicle Spring Training Notebook St. Louis, MO By Ray MileurMichael McGreevy continues to quietly strengthen his case this spring.The young right-hander delivered another steady outing Friday afternoon, striking out four over four innings while allowing just one run in the Cardinals’ Grapefruit League matchup against the Baltimore Orioles.McGreevy worked efficiently, running his pitch count to 60 while surrendering four singles and issuing no walks. The Orioles were able to put the ball in play, but the Cardinals’ defense handled the rest as McGreevy kept traffic manageable and stayed in control of the strike zone.Through 8.1 innings this spring, the numbers tell a simple story. McGreevy has allowed just one walk while striking out eight batters. For a pitcher whose profile has always leaned on command, strike throwing, and attacking hitters, that ratio is exactly what the Cardinals want to see.He isn’t overpowering hitters with pure velocity. That has never been his game. McGreevy wins by getting ahead, working both sides of the plate, and forcing hitters to swing at his pitch rather than theirs. Old-school baseball people tend to appreciate that approach, and it fits well within the organizational philosophy that has long defined the Cardinals’ pitching pipeline.The outing also carried a little added significance.McGreevy is tentatively lined up to start the third game of the regular season for St. Louis on March 29 at Busch Stadium against the Tampa Bay Rays. While spring numbers never tell the full story, they can reinforce confidence, and right now McGreevy is doing exactly what a young pitcher must do this time of year—throw strikes, stay efficient, and give the coaching staff reasons to trust him.For a Cardinals club leaning into youth and opportunity in 2026, starts like Friday’s are the kind that quietly build momentum.Sometimes the most important progress in spring training isn’t loud.It’s steady. Photo - Justin Edmonds | Credit: Getty Images

McGreevey, a lock for the Cardinal #3 Starter Role

The Cardinal Chronicle In the SpotlightTink Hence: Electric Arm, Unfinished ChapterSt. Louis, MO By Ray MileurFew pitching prospects in the Cardinals organization have generated as much intrigue over the past several seasons as right-hander Tink Hence. Armed with one of the most dynamic arsenals in the system, Hence enters the 2026 season at an important crossroads in his development — a pitcher with frontline potential still working to translate talent into innings.Hence, 23, was selected by the Cardinals in the second round of the 2020 MLB Draft and quickly emerged as one of the most exciting young arms in the organization. At his peak on the prospect lists, he was ranked the No. 3 prospect in the Cardinals system and No. 68 overall in baseball, a reflection of the rare combination of stuff and swing-and-miss ability he brings to the mound.Even now, despite a slide in prospect rankings due largely to missed time, evaluators continue to view Hence as possessing some of the most electric pure stuff in the Cardinals pipeline. Entering 2026, Baseball America ranks him as the No. 16 prospect in the organization, while scouting reports still highlight the elite quality of his pitch mix.His fastball typically sits 94–97 mph and can touch higher, featuring late life that allows it to play up in the zone. Baseball America previously rated it as the best fastball in the Cardinals system, a testament to both its velocity and movement.Hence pairs that fastball with a tight mid-80s slider, another pitch recognized by Baseball America as the best slider in the organization. The slider serves as his primary strikeout weapon and is capable of missing bats against both right- and left-handed hitters.The third pitch may be the most impressive of all. His changeup, thrown with excellent arm speed and fading action, was once recognized by MLB Pipeline as the best changeup among all Top-100 prospects in baseball. When all three pitches are working together, Hence shows the repertoire of a potential top-of-the-rotation starter.Across his first five professional seasons, the results have reflected that swing-and-miss ability. Hence has struck out 31.3 percent of the batters he has faced over 257.1 career innings, an elite strikeout rate that continues to fuel optimism about his future.The challenge has not been stuff.The challenge has been durability.The 2025 season proved particularly frustrating. Hence missed the first seven weeks of the year with a right lat strain, then returned to make eight starts spread across four levels — Springfield (AA), Peoria (High-A), Palm Beach (Low-A), and the FCL Cardinals — as the organization focused on rebuilding his workload.Unfortunately, his season ended early after a shoulder impingement in July, limiting him to a shortened campaign and further delaying his path toward St. Louis.For the Cardinals, the priority entering 2026 is simple: keep Hence on the mound.If he can log consistent innings and build back durability, the talent remains strong enough for him to quickly climb the organizational ladder again. Few pitchers in the system possess his ability to miss bats, and fewer still combine that with a legitimate three-pitch mix.Prospect rankings may rise and fall, but the core evaluation on Hence has not changed.The arm is real.Now the task is proving it over a full season. Photo: PJ Maigi, Springfield Cardinals&nbsp; The Cardinal Chronicle Preserving the Past, Promoting the Present, and Projecting the Future.&nbsp;

Tink Hence: Electric Arm, Unfinished Chapter

The St. Louis Cardinal Chronicle 

The St. Louis Cardinal Chronicle is dedicated to preserving Cardinals history, covering today’s game, and following the next generation through the minor leagues. Written in the tradition of the old beat writers, it’s baseball with perspective — steady, faithful, and rooted in a lifelong love for the game.