Former Cardinals Fan Favorite Returns to St. Louis as Rangers Skipper

A former Cardinal makes his return to Busch Stadium on Monday night.

Jul 26, 2024; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; The hat and glove of Texas Rangers fielder Leody Taveras (3) during a game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images | John E. Sokolowski-Imagn Images

After taking two out of three games from their hated rivals, the Chicago Cubs, the St. Louis Cardinals open up a three-game series with the Texas Rangers. This will be a rematch of the two teams that met in the 2011 World Series, a series the Cardinals won in seven games to capture their 11th title.

An underrated part of that roster was Skip Schumaker, who had been with the Cardinals since making his Major League debut in 2005. He was a Cardinal until 2012 before making stops with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Cincinnati Reds.

Schumaker will make his return to St. Louis tonight, but as the skipper of the Rangers.

"2011 World Series Champion Skip Schumaker returns to St. Louis tonight to manage against the St. Louis Cardinals," Dani Wexelman of Cardinals.TV posted on X.

Cardinals Fan Favorite Returns to Busch Stadium

May 27, 2026; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers manager Skip Schumaker walks to the pitchers mound during the eighth inning against the Houston Astros at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

After his playing career, Schumaker became the bench coach of the San Diego Padres and later rejoined the Cardinals in the same role in 2022 before managing the Miami Marlins for two years. Texas hired him as a special assistant after the 2024 season and he was inserted into the managerial role following the departure of future Hall of Fame manager Bruce Bochy.

Schumaker also played a key role in St. Louis winning their 2006 World Series title and was teammates with some great players, including Albert Pujols, Yadier Molina, Chris Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, Matt Holliday, Scott Rolen, Jim Edmonds, Jason Isringhausen and more during his time in St. Louis as a player.

With more fans showing up to Busch Stadium this year, Schumaker will likely receive a nice standing ovation when he delivers the lineup card for the Rangers on Monday. He may be with Texas now, but he will always be a fan favorite in St. Louis despite not being a household name.

Cardinals fans have a unique appreciation of their past and present players, regardless of the role they played, and even though Schumaker was far from a superstar, he still was a popular player and coach in St. Louis and did a lot of great things for the city and the organization.

The Cardinals will hope to keep their momentum alive after beating the Cubs this past series. It should be interesting to see what happens between the Rangers and Cardinals this week, but Schumaker will be welcomed back just as any other fan favorite would be.