On Saturday, January 17th, the St. Louis Cardinals Caravan traveled to Springfield, Illinois and visited the UIS campus at the Recreation and Athletics Center (TRAC). This collaborative event between the Cardinals and the Prairie Stars offered fans a dual experience between Major League Baseball and Division II Basketball.
The St. Louis Cardinals that came along for the ride to Springfield included catcher Yohel Pozo, pitcher Andre Pallante, infielder Thomas Saggese, and pitcher Michael McGreevy. Along with broadcasters Chip Caray, Brad Thompson, and Spanish Language nnouncer and brother of Cardinals Legend Yadier Molina, Bengie Molina.
Fans 16 or older in attendance who purchased tickets to UIS’ Men’s and Women’s Basketball double-header received a voucher for two free 2026 Cardinals weekday tickets.
All fans in attendance had the opportunity to meet each player and broadcaster while receiving free autographs. The children in attendance were most excited to meet and talk to catcher Yohel Pozo. His inspiring story of being in the minor leagues for 8 seasons before being called up, along with his swagger and charisma, made him a popular name.
Pozo spoke about one of the highlights of his 2025 season, where he hit a late inning 3 home run against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. Pozo explained that the impact of this home run went beyond the points it scored, it also silenced the stadium filled with cheering Cubs fans.
“They were getting to me, and the after that, they just went quiet. It was nice.” Pozo said.
Cardinals players weren’t the only popular baseball celebrities in attendance, as Chip Caray, grandson of famous broadcaster Harry Caray and Cardinals play-by-play announcer since 2023, also made an appearance.
Fans may assume that being the grandson of Harry Caray means obvious super stardom, but Chip shared that despite his last name, he wasn’t all that close with his grandfather growing up, and as a broadcaster, he still had to work hard and pave his own way.
This event was a big day for not only Cardinals fans but Prairie Star fans as well, as UIS swept both doubleheader games. The women’s team started the day with a big 38-point win over Southwest Baptist, where Freshman Julia Mingus showed out, scoring a team high 21 points with 15 of those points coming on 5 three pointers.
The men’s game followed up with an impressive 23-point win in which 3 Prairie Stars players had over 20 points. Tye Banks scored 21, and Britton Dutton and Isaiah Davis scored 20 points each.
Halftime at the UIS women’s basketball game was a perfect time for a fun-filled relay race to get fans involved. St. Louis Cardinals 2021 first-round pick Michael McGreevey and 2023 Texas minor league MVP Thomas Saggese were picked to be captains of each team for the race.
Each team in this relay race had to put on a Jimmy John’s-inspired costume, make a few layups at opposite end of the court, and then pass off the costume to the next person. At the end of the competition, it all came down to the two captains, McGreevey and Saggese. Despite McGreevey’s high school basketball experience, it was Saggese’s squad that came out on top.
Saggese, who celebrated the win humbly, shared that as a young rookie in Major League Baseball, it can be easy to let the fame get to your head. Saggese expressed that he learned valuable leadership skills from former Cardinal veterans Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado.
“A lot of fame and success comes with ego, I feel like Arenado and Goldschmidt were just really good about being good guys.” Saggese said.
Prairie Star and Cardinal fans can look forward to this event coming back in 2027, as UIS Athletic Director Mike Hermann shared that this event was a big success for both organizations. Fans can keep up to date with all things Cardinals as they get set to begin their 2026 campaign at cardinals.com and all things Prairie Stars at uisprairiestars.com.
