In 1953, August A. Busch purchased the St. Louis Cardinals for nearly four million dollars. His dream included not only the best players money could buy but a brand new Busch Stadium in downtown St. Louis. By May 1966, when the new stadium was opened, the Cardinals were on the cusp of greatness. This volume looks back at the outstanding Cardinal teams of the 1967 and 1968 seasons. Beginning with the ownership shift in the early 1950s, it examines the events leading up to the opening of the new stadium and tracks the various player trades, policy changes and inside dealings of baseball that produced one of the era's great teams. The effects of Branch Rickey's farm system on both the franchise's success and the sport of baseball are discussed, as are the rumblings of labor trouble that would directly involve one of the Cardinals? own. An appendix contains detailed statistics from the 1967 and 1968 seasons. An index and period photographs are also included.
