Who is the biggest bird? The Memphis Redbirds and the St. Louis Cardinals faced off in an exhibition game to find out.
On March 24th, in the Battle of the Birds, the two teams faced off in a friendly match. The Memphis Redbirds (AAA) are the St. Louis Cardinals' minor league baseball team. This was the 12th meeting between the two teams and the 25th anniversary of the first Battle of the Birds game in 2000 which saw the Redbirds beat the Cardinals 10-6.
The crowd was full of red as the event was a near sellout, with people wearing shirts from both teams.
“For the first time I don’t have to root against either team,” said a fan in the crowd.
The first inning opened with 5 runs scored between the teams. Star third baseman Nolan Arenado of the Cardinals hit a 3-run homerun in his only plate appearance of the night.
The Redbirds responded by scoring two runs in the bottom of the first, however these would be the last runs scored in the game.
The last 8 innings would not have a single run scored with both teams threatening, but unable to score. The game ended 3-2 for the Cardinals.
During the game, both teams would often mess with each other: with a Redbirds player shaking a baseball and chasing a Cardinals player in a pickle, and Wilson Contreras doing push-ups on 1st base after getting a Redbirds player out.
The Memphis Redbirds officially start their 2025 regular season on Friday, March 28 with a series against the Louisville Bats in Kentucky. Their first home series begins on Tuesday, April 1, against the Buffalo Bisons.
The St. Louis Cardinals’ opening day is on Thursday, March 27 with a series at home against the Minnesota Twins.
