On March 29, 2011, the St. Louis Cardinals will make a brief stop in Springfield, Mo. to play their AA affiliate, Springfield Cardinals, in an exhibition game before starting the regular season two days later against the San Diego Padres.

The Springfield affiliate was hoping to get a couple of games so that the major leaguers could spend more time with the local fans. However, the locals will still get an opportunity to see Albert, Waino, Carp, and Yadi along with former Springfield players, Jaime Garcia, Jon Jay, Allen Craig and Colby Rasmus (given he’s not traded before then).

The Springfield Cardinals are reducing some ticket prices after the team set a low water mark for attendance with 357,336 fans last season. It was the first year the team drew fewer than 400,000 fans since 2005, their first year in Springfield.