USA softball team to make return

Springfield included in 2008 Olympic tune-up tour; state baseball tournament will be at Meador Park. The return of Team USA comes as a stop on its "Bound 4 Beijing" tour — a 46-city swing that will ready it for the 2008 Olympics in China — which lands at the Meador Softball Complex on July 18.

The 2008 version includes such recognizable names as pitchers Jennie Finch and Lisa Fernandez. Tickets will go on sale March 3 at the Park Board office, 1923 N. Weller.
Team USA will again compete against a regional all-star team comprised of former Missouri State players and others from area programs.

Be sure and read the last paragraph...

ST. LOUIS -- Albert Pujols is willing to forgive, but he clearly hasn't forgotten.

On Monday, Pujols made his first extensive public comments since his name was falsely reported to be contained within former Sen. George Mitchell's report on illegal performance-enhancing drugs in baseball.

"I don't have to prove myself," he said. "Since 2001, I've been proving myself with the numbers. I've been proving myself every year. How much better can I get? Only God knows how much better [I can] get. But do I need to cheat in this game to get better? This is nothing for me.

"Baseball is just a hobby, man. God has blessed me. And I fear God too much for me to do a stupid thing. I fear him. If I do some stupid things to help me out, to hit .400 or three-something or hit 30 home runs, he's going to take that away from me. So why not be the natural guy like I've been since I was in the Minor Leagues? To cheat in this game, that's not right."

DON'T MISS PUJOLS AND THE REDBIRDS!

The Springfield Cardinals are excited to announce that individual tickets for the 2008 season will go on sale Wednesday, March 5th at 9am. Tickets for all 70 regular season games at Hammons Field will be available, in addition to both exhibition games against the St. Louis Cardinals, as well as the 2008 Texas League All-Star Game presented by Great Southern.

To make the purchasing process convenient and fan-friendly to all Cardinals’ fans, tickets can be purchased one of two ways; by calling (417) 863-2143 or by logging on to www.springfieldcardinals.com.

A limited amount of chair-back tickets, along with general admission tickets (grass and standing-room) will be available for the exhibition games on March 28th and 29th, as the St. Louis Cardinals make their first visit to Hammons Field since the Inaugural Season of 2005.

Don’t wait for individual tickets to go on sale and risk not getting to see Albert Pujols and the gang…become a Springfield Cardinals Season Ticket Holder! Season Ticket Packages begin at just $99 for a Quarter Season Ticket Package. To become a Springfield Cardinals Season Ticket Holder, call (417) 863-2143 or for more information, log on to www.springfieldcardinals.com. We hope to see you at Hammons Field very soon. Go Cards and Get Your RED On!