ST. LOUIS — For the first time since he hung up his spikes, David Freese was back home at Busch Stadium on Tuesday. The hometown hero was on hand for his Budweiser Bash and to throw out the first pitch, and it was a moment he's had on his mind for a long time.
"I'm excited. I've thought about it for a while, to be honest. I've really thought about just getting back with my family and friends in one room hanging out, it's been a long time since I've had a lot of friends and family in the seats for a Cardinals game so this is gonna mean a lot," Freese said before the game.
Freese said he was planning to have around 50 or 60 family or friends in attendance for his return. He hasn't been back at Busch since April of 2019 as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
"I've just really been thinking about getting on the field," Freese said. "As a player, we understand when you get on a field the feeling is different. To get on a field and not be on the visiting side. It's been a minute since that and that's kind of where my head's been."
Of course, Freese is best remembered for his 2011 postseason heroics, where he was named World Series MVP and created an all-time baseball moment with a walk off home run in Game 6. Ironically, Freese now lives in Texas, among Texas Rangers fans he terrorized in the World Series. And he does get reminded of that fact from time to time.
"Every now and then. You don't get noticed too much, but when you do they come at you pretty hard. But when they do it's a good time," Freese said.
Freese has some thoughts on the current Cardinals, too, and he is a huge fan of the player now manning third base in St. Louis.
"Same old Nolan, different jersey obviously. I love watching him," Freese said. "It's kind of funny, he was around the only guy on the field in LA towards the end of the game the last time we were going to play them, I told him I was going to retire and I appreciated watching him from afar for so long. He was about the only guy I said that to."
Two of Freese's teammates. Yadier Molina and Adam Wainwright, are still competing at a high level for the current Cardinals. Freese knows how impressive it is for them to still be performing at this level all these years later.
"The fact they're doing what they're doing... To really understand what that takes at that age every fifth day even. Or even Yadi, three or four days a week, or I don't know he might be catching all the time I'm not sure. It's just incredible what they have to do and how to get their minds right to do that. They're a big part of this club and this city. It's just incredible they're doing what they're doing."