This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, July 15, 2011 - WASHINGTON - Sporting St. Louis Cardinals caps and uniforms, U.S. Reps. Russ Carnahan and William Lacy Clay, both D-St. Louis, helped bring home an 8-2 victory for the Democrats at the 50th annual Roll Call congressional baseball game Thursday.
"It's a thrill to be out here playing baseball," Carnahan said as he warmed up near third base. "It was my dream when I was a kid to play in a big league field." He boasted that St. Louis is "the best baseball town in America because we have the best fans in America."
Carnahan and Clay took fielding practice in the outfield before the start of the game, exchanging high-fives. Carnahan said he was excited to play in his seventh congressional game and seemed grateful for the baseball distraction from the debt-ceiling debate dominating Congress.
"It is to remind everyone this is a great country and we have to get things done," Carnahan said. "There is really camaraderie. With all the contentiousness in Washington these days, it's a great way to break down those barriers."
The event, held at Nationals Park -- the stadium where the Washington Nationals play -- raises money for the charities in Washington. Carnahan wore a Cardinals jersey which bore No. 3 in honor of his congressional district, which was recently eliminated as part of the redistricting process.
Before heading into the dugout to get ready for the game, Carnahan predicted a victory for the Democrats, mainly because rookie pitcher, Rep. Cedric Richmond, D-La., has "a really great arm from playing college ball. We'll see how he stands up against Shimkus from across the river."
That's U.S. Rep. John Shimkus, R-Collinsville, who struck out in the third and pitched part of the game for the GOP team.
The Democrats scored three runs in both the first and second innings, one by pinch runner Clay. Carnahan made outs at his first two at-bats, but got a base hit in the bottom of the fifth and stole second and third before scoring.
First played in 1909, the annual congressional baseball game took place intermittently until 1958, when the speaker of the House decided it had become too physical and called it off. The tradition was revived in 1962 with the sponsorship of the congressional newspaper Roll Call, which awards a trophy to the team that wins three out of a five game series. This was the third consecutive win for the Democrats.
The small, spirited crowd was made up mostly of congressional staffers, interns and legislators' family members. Luke Qiu, 19, an economics and finance student at Washington University interning here with the Stern Group, said he was rooting for Carnahan because he has friends working for the congressman.
"It's fun to watch. They're kind of old," Qiu said, laughing. "I would love to see someone get a home run. Beside politics, they can play baseball. It's nice to see."
The Republicans managed to score two runs during their final at-bat, but it wasn't enough. Democrat team manager Rep. Mike Doyle, D-Pa., beamed as he was awarded the trophy. "This is our first series win since the early '90s," he said. "To get three wins in a row -- it doesn't get any better than that. We played almost error-free baseball."
Asked where the trophy will be displayed, Doyle grinned. "That's the spoils of being the manager," he said. "The trophy will be with me forever. We finally retire one of these babies."
Rebecca Koenig is an intern with the Scripps Howard Foundation in Washington. She is a student at the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Va.