The Curse of the Babe in St. Louis?

Many a Hollywood blockbuster has centered on a demon that could not survive without a body to possess. There is, most notably, The Exorcist, perhaps the most frightening horror film of all time.

Now it appears that a curse may have been redirected to torment a new host - the St. Louis Cardinals.

Much was made a few years ago when the Boston Red Sox appeared to cast off a long-attached hex. The old saw says that Babe Ruth cast a curse on Beantown's beloved baseballers after then Red Sox owner Harry Frazee sold The Babe to the New York Yankees to raise production money for a new play.

That, said believers, was why the Red Sox had not won a World Series since 1918, Ruth's last year with the club. They pointed to all sorts of proof, including the almost inexplicable error Boston first baseman Bill Buckner committed in the 1986 World Series.

But that was then. Cast aside the doubt. Boston won the 2004 World Series with a four-game sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals.

The result?

The curse was no more. It had been squashed.

Or was it?

It's worth noting that Boston parted ways with the curse against the St. Louis Cardinals. Midwest's finest dropped the series in four straight games. And it's been all downhill since then.

In 2005, the Redbirds lost Scott Rolen, perhaps the most talented all-around third baseman in the Majors. Then, with bulldozers and wrecking balls idling in the parking lots around Busch Stadium, St. Louis lost a six-game series to Houston.
In case you're scoring at home, that's a 2-8 record since the Cardinals took the field against Boston.

And that's really just the beginning for a St. Louis team that has endured all sorts of hardships this season. In 2006, nearly every player on the team has served time on the disabled list. Since St. Louis christened the team's new stadium with a victory in April, Jim Edmonds missed a month of time with what is being classified as vertigo. Days before his return to the lineup, the Cards lost closer Jason Isringhausen for the season due to an arm injury. Pitcher Mark Mulder also went under the knife for shoulder surgery. And add David Eckstein, Albert Pujols, Scott Rolen, John Rodriguez, Chris Carpenter, Sidney Ponson, Ricardo Rincon, and the list goes on.

But that's not the real issue. The signs of a curse are just now poking their heads up from whichever crack in the new Busch Stadium held them. St. Louis lost a bewildering seven straight games in mid-August to allow the Cincinnati Reds and Houston Astros back into the race for the National League Central title.

Any guess as to how this might turn out?

Perhaps the better question will be which player on the Cards' roster is set to become the 21st Century's Bill Buckner.

The Babe's curse is still alive, albeit on the move.