154/365: What's Wrong With Stan?

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Stan Musial is considered the greatest player in the history of St. Louis Cardinals baseball. There is a monumental statue of him on the west side of Busch Stadium. I think it's very unflattering. The back and shoulders are huge, out of proportion, a Frankenstein look. Well, maybe poetic license is allowed to show his strength. But the face is so misshapen (notice how the jaw is way off center), the expression is so dead and it doesn't look much like him, anyway. The team could have done better.

Still more cute Chinese kids on St. Louis Daily Photo.

150/365: Lou Brock's Empty Eyes

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The Memorial Day long weekend marks the beginning of summer season activities in the US. It was hot yesterday; my legs didn't carry me and my gear as far as I would have liked. One thing I did was walk by the corner of the baseball stadium with its statues Cardinal greats. Maybe there was a new way to look at them.

Sure, in their faces. There's no good way to do eyes on statues. Greco-Roman sculpture had plain spheres. Later, many artists adopted the technique of gouging depressions to represent the iris and pupil. It may look more natural at a glance but when you get up close and stare in the face, it's like no one's there.

St. Louis Daily Photo is on parade.

92/365: The Red Sea

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The statue in Kiener Plaza of the runner who parts the waters has been on St. Louis Daily Photo a few times. For the opening of the Cardinals baseball season, the contents of the fountain were died red. All that color could be a slaughter or big blocks of red hard candy. The sanguine loyalty of Cardinal fans even runs through the city water pipes.

The same red radiated from the fans themselves on St. Louis Daily Photo today.

91/365: Fast Ball

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At the pre-game party in Kiener Plaza before the Cardinals home opener yesterday. This young man could have major league talent.

St. Louis Daily Photo is flying today.

81/365: Justice For Baseball Players

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A banner with Cardinals' slugger Matt Holliday hangs over Market Street downtown. The name on the bottom is the cable channel that carries most of the team's games. You will find such banners on lamp posts all over American cities. They are paid advertising. Heaven knows the City of St. Louis needs the money.

Having the Civil Courts Building in the background gets me wondering if Holliday needs justice. He is a pretty good player. His pay is $17 million a year. He is the highest paid player in team history but Albert Pujols, whose contract is up at the end of this season, thinks it is a trivial sum (as recently discussed on this blog here). What about justice for fans? Mere mortals can't afford to go to games anymore.

Today is St. Louis Daily Photo's fourth anniversary. Join the celebration!