After spending the decade mired in mediocrity the Cardinals came to life in 1979 finishing in 3rd place with some nice young talent playing for their former 3rdbaseman Kenny Boyer. The Redbirds stayed in the hunt until early September just around the time the Pirates began to pull away. Keith Hernandez, a wizard with the glove, hit .344 and was voted co-MVP of the NL along with Willie Stargell. Along with Hernandez the Cardinal lineup had 4 other starters who batted over .300, which makes it no shock that the Redbirds led the league in hitting. Hernandez, Ted Simmons and George Hendrick were the only 3 in double digits for homers on a team that was starved for power. The pitching staff was average, with no true ace. Mark Littell (9-4, 2.19, 9 sv) led a bullpen by committee.
Editor’s Note: Tony and Jim sent some gr8 photos over to be used. The Jim Lentine and Tom Bruno shots had to be colorized. Mike Dimmel’s photo came from a minor league card. I added the Cardinal logo and turned his red jersey into something close to the blue roadies that the Cards wore during that era.
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