If Ed Wheatley has anything to do with it, St. Louis’ greatest baseball legends won’t soon be forgotten. His new Reedy Press children's book, Incredible Cardinals, hits St. Louis bookstores this week. Alongside Ed Koehler’s vibrant illustrations, Wheatley’s story introduces children to the Cardinals greats immortalized on the left field wall at Busch Stadium and invites them to partake in the decades-long tradition of St. Louis Cardinals fandom.
For many St. Louis youngsters, the Cards’ history is foreign territory.
“I think it’s a sin that kids don’t know who Stan Musial is,” says Wheatley. As a longtime devotee of St. Louis baseball, Wheatley hopes to ensure that legends such as Stan the Man don’t go forgotten.
Although this is Wheatley’s first venture into the genre of children’s literature, it is not his first experience as a historian of St. Louis baseball. In 2017, he co-authored his first book, St. Louis Browns: The Story of a Beloved Team alongside Bill Borst and Bill Rogers. The book inspired a documentary film titled The St. Louis Browns: The Team that Baseball Forgot, which premiered on PBS last March and was narrated by Jon Hamm.
At first glance, the audiences that Incredible Cardinals and St. Louis Browns target may seem to vary largely in age. Wheatley, however, contends that there may be more crossover than expected. The same folks who enjoyed reminiscing over the Browns’ legacy will likely be inclined to pick up a copy of Incredible Cardinals and use it as a platform to share their favorite memories of the Cardinals with their children and grandchildren.
“This book, with its wonderful illustrations, becomes a way for parents and grandparents alike to bond with their kids [over] baseball and their heroes with memories, stories and perhaps hopes of what could come," says Wheatley. "While there is a focus for the child from preschool through elementary school, it can be for parents and grandparents as well to spark memories and stories to sit down and share with their children and grandchildren."
Alongside Stan the Man, Jay Hanna Dean, Albert "Red" Schoendienst, Bob Gibson, Lou Brock, Ozzie Smith, Whitey Herzog, Albert Pujols, and Yadier Molina make an appearance. The greats appear in all their colorful, caricatured glory, boasting superhuman abilities that could earn this book a spot next to the superhero comics on the shelf.
“Dizzy” Dean’s fastballs fly across the field in flames, Molina wields a canon in lieu of a right arm, and Stan the Man hits his five moonshots—literally—to the moon. Wheatley and Koehler worked together to plan out the illustrations, Wheatley providing rough sketches that Koehler used to create his artful renditions.
The book will be sold at big-box bookstores such as in the area, such as Barnes & Noble, as well as at local shops, such as Main Street Books in St. Charles (307 S. Main) and The Novel Neighbor in Webster Groves (7905 Big Bend). Incredible Cardinals hopes to be a hit with long-time Cards devotees, as well as new fans in the making.
