Cardinals Caravan set for Friday, January 17

Springfield, MO - The St. Louis Cardinals Caravan will make its annual trip to Springfield on Friday, January 17th. The Caravan will be held at Hammons Field in the Indoor Training Facility and is slated to kick off at 12:15pm. Lunch will be available for purchase at the event.  

This year's attendees will feature former Springfield Cardinals and current St. Louis Cardinals Shelby Miller, Joe Kelly and Kolten Wong. Former St. Louis Cardinals Danny Cox and Tom Lawless will also be a part of the caravan, and Cardinals broadcaster Mike Claiborne will serve as the emcee.

After making his big league debut on September 5, 2012, Miller spent the entire 2013 campaign with the Cardinals. The former 1st-round pick put together an impressive rookie season last year, going 15-9 with a 3.06 ERA and 169 strikeouts through 31 starts, earning him a 3rd-place finish in the 2013 National League Rookie of the Year voting. Miller was a member of the 2011 Springfield Cardinals and went 9-3 with a 2.70 ERA through 16 starts.

Kelly also enjoyed a breakout season with St. Louis in 2013, going 10-5 with a 2.69 ERA through 37 games (15 starts) in the regular season. Kelly was dominant on the mound following the All-Star Break, tying for the Major League lead with nine wins and ranking fifth with a 1.91 ERA through 13 starts after the Midsummer Classic. He also made four postseason starts for the Cardinals, including one in the World Series. Kelly was a teammate of Miller in Springfield in 2011 and started 11 games that year.

After helping the Springfield Cardinals win their first-ever Texas League Championship in 2012, Wong spent the majority of the 2013 campaign with the Memphis Redbirds (Triple-A) before debuting with the big league club on August 16. The 2013 St. Louis Cardinals Minor League Player of the Year played in 32 regular season games and seven playoff games with St. Louis, earning a spot on the Cardinals World Series roster.

Cox was selected by St. Louis in the 13th round of the 1981 Amateur Draft and spent the first six years of his 11-year Major League career with the Cards. As a Cardinal, Cox posted a 56-56 record with a 3.40 ERA and 493 strikeouts in 152 games (150 starts). He helped guide the Cardinals to the 1985 World Series with an 18-9 record and a 2.88 ERA through 35 starts that year, before winning 11 games and helping St. Louis return to the World Series in 1987.

Lawless spent half of his eight-year career with the Cardinals, suiting up for St. Louis from 1985-88. A teammate of Cox on the Cardinals World Series squads in 1985 and 1987, he is well-remembered for his dramatic game-winning home run in Game 4 of the 1987 World Series against the Minnesota Twins. Lawless suited up in a total of 166 games as a Cardinal. He enjoyed the best season of his career as a Cardinal in 1986 when he put together a .282 batting average. Lawless has been a member of the Houston Astros Minor League Coaching Staff since 2009 and managed the Corpus Christi Hooks in 2011.

Claiborne will be covering his 34th year of St. Louis sports in 2014 and his 10th year as part of the Cardinals radio broadcast team with Mike Shannon and John Rooney. Their work together includes the pregame show, play-by-play, Star of the Game and postgame show that includes "Live at Shannon's," as a co-host with Mike Shannon.

Coinciding with the afternoon program at Hammons Field, the Springfield Cardinals will have a Garage Sale featuring game used jerseys, helmets, bats, bar stools and many other Cardinals collectibles used by some of your favorite players here in Springfield.

Doors will open for the 2014 Cardinals Caravan at 11:30am, with the event scheduled to run from 12:15 - 2pm. Admission for the Cardinals Caravan is $5 for adults and $3 for kids (ages 3-12).  All admission proceeds will benefit the Children's Miracle Network.

In addition to appearing at Hammons Field in the afternoon, the caravan will also visit Mercy and Cox South Hospitals. The players will stop by both hospitals to visit the pediatric ward and other areas. 

The Caravan will continue on to JQH Arena for the Bass Pro Shops Tournament of Champions where the players and Cardinals staff will sign autographs from 7:45 - 8:45pm, before being recognized at half time of the 8:30pm game. A ticket to the Tournament of Champions will be required to attend the evening autograph session at JQH Arena.

As in previous years, the Cardinals will be implementing an Autograph Ticket system at each stop of the caravan. The first 400 kids (15 and under) through the door on the day of the event will receive a free Autograph Ticket which guarantees one autograph from each current and former player. Due to high demand, autographs will only be available for fans 15 and under.

For more information on the 2014 Cardinals Caravan, visit SpringfieldCardinals.com or call (417) 863-0395.

2014 Promo Club Memberships available with any Season Ticket Plan right now

It's never too early to start planning for the 10th Season of Springfield Cardinals Baseball in 2014! Available right now are memberships for the 2014 Promo Club. By signing up for the exclusive Promo Club, Season Ticket Holders will be guaranteed to receive every promotional item on the 2014 schedule for just the small fee of $85. You can now have your bobbleheads, caps and shirts guaranteed by enrolling in this club!

Space in the Promo Club is limited, so sign up for the club and a 2014 Ticket Plan today. Ticket Plans in 18, 35 and 70-game varieties are available right now and start at just $106.

For information about 2014 Season Ticket Plans, click below or call the Front Office at (417) 863-0395. The 10th Season begins at Hammons Field with Opening Night on Thursday, April 3, 2014 at 7:10pm.

Click here to view the Springfield Cardinals 2014 Ticket Plans.

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