Manager Mike Shildt could be one of them. “I don’t think we can discount it,” he said, smiling. “The squirrel shows up. We get five runs. We’d scored six all series prior to that.”
Then the manager joked that equipment manager Ernie Moore already had packed the squirrel for transportation back to St. Louis. “For all the animal lovers, he’s going to be well taken care of,” said Shildt.
The effect of the squirrel wasn’t immediate, just like it wasn’t in 2011. On Sunday, Matt Adams struck out after the squirrel left the playing field. In the playoff game, Schumaker flied to center although David Freese homered in the next inning to extend the Cardinals’ lead.