Illinois Ruffles Some Feathers by Courting St. Louis Cardinals

The nerve!

Illinois lawmakers actually are suggesting that the Cardinals--the St. Louis Cardinals--might want to mosey across the Mississippi River and settle down in a brand-new baseball stadium in Illinois.

Fans in this sports-mad Missouri city would be amused if it weren’t so alarming.

Mark McGwire slugging away in Belleville? Hall of Fame announcer Jack Buck calling strikes in Alton? The proud statue of Cardinal great Stan Musial greeting fans in Cahokia?

“You think of Southern California, you think of the beach. You think of St. Louis, the first thing that comes to mind is the Arch, then the Cardinals,” said Marc Schreiber of the St. Louis Sports Commission. “It doesn’t matter if you’re 26 or 56 or 76, everyone has their own story about their attachment to the team. No one wants to see the Cardinals move out of downtown.”

Then again, downtown isn’t falling all over itself to keep them.

Because while the Cardinals insist that they want to stay in St. Louis, they also insist that they need a brand-new ballpark to replace Busch Stadium--which is 34 years old and looks it. And they want the taxpayers to pitch in, in a big way. The team has proposed a $370-million package: The Cardinals would put up about one-third. The state and the city would have to chip in the rest.

St. Louis officials are mulling over the proposal.

And while they mull, they’re making on-the-one-hand, on-the-other-hand comments, like this from mayoral spokesman Michael West: “We love the Cardinals, no doubt about it . . . but we have to keep in mind the citizens of the city and what’s beneficial to them.”

To some in Illinois, that sounds like St. Louis isn’t so sure it wants the Cards at any price.

So a gentle--but persistent--courtship has begun.

Illinois lawmakers have met with Cardinals President Mark Lamping. Gov. George Ryan sent the Cardinals a letter proposing a chat about stadium sites.

And Illinois boosters take every chance to mention that their citizens would no doubt love to fund a ballpark. Then they add: We don’t tax ticket sales like they do in St. Louis. We wouldn’t take a slice of every player’s salary the way St. Louis does through its earnings tax. And oh, by the way, have you seen our 200 acres of vacant riverfront property? It’s just five minutes from Busch Stadium. Great view of the Gateway Arch.

“We’re not trying to lure them over,” said state Rep. Kurt Granberg, a top Illinois Democrat. “But the Cardinals have reached an impasse with the city of St. Louis, and in case that impasse can’t be resolved, why not be in position to afford them the opportunity to move across the river?”

Illinois’ offer, however low-key, has put pressure on St. Louis to make a move on the ballpark. Losing the Cardinals would not only be a psychological blow--St. Louis, after all, was named the best sports city in America this year--but it also would be a huge economic hit. Baseball and hockey are the two draws that reliably bring suburbanites downtown, where they spend money--not only on tickets and hot dogs but also on parking and souvenirs and nips in the sports bars.

“Losing the Cardinals from downtown would be tantamount to turning the lights off,” said Kim Kimbrough, director of a business coalition working on downtown development. “They are that much of an anchor.”

Still, the city has reason to be wary about the stadium deal--and not only because it desperately needs its tax dollars for education and health care. There’s history to consider: Some voters are still bitter that so much public money was spent to lure the Rams to St. Louis after the NFL’s Cardinals left town for Arizona. Others are devoted to Busch Stadium, an intimate ballpark with architecture that echoes the Gateway Arch.

So a new stadium for the Cardinals is not a done deal.

Which leaves the door open, if only a sliver, for Illinois.

Lawmakers there want the Cardinals mostly for the economic boost they would give the sagging region just east of St. Louis. But Steve Brown, a spokesman for Illinois state Rep. Michael Madigan, offers one other motivating factor: No disrespect to baseball’s White Sox or Cubs, but let’s be honest here: “It would be a good thing,” Brown said wistfully, “for Illinois to have a consistently winning franchise.”