The 4 rules of Yadier Molina Day

St. Louis received a brand new city holiday this past October.

Oct. 4 is officially Yadier Molina day here in St. Louis, but what does that actually mean? Does he get free tacos? Does he get to pick crunchy or soft? In my completely unprofessional style, I fill you in on what it means.

This past season at Busch Stadium, Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina were honored in a special ceremony before a game. In the end, two different days were named after the players: Oct. 4 for Yadi and Oct. 5 for the Machine that lives. But what does that actually entail? Without calling anybody or searching Google, I will lay out those terms today.

Rule #4: Block everything!

No matter what, everyone in the city must immediately go into a blocking position if something (like a baseball) hits the ground in front or around them. Grocery store, work conference room, or the frigging bathroom. If Yadi did it for 19 years, you can do it for a day. Somehow, you may turn into a hero.

Rule #3: Post something Cardinal Nation viral on Instagram

Forget that sunset shot or cute snap of the dog or cat. Let’s turn up the heat, folks. If someone has wronged you or called you out, head to IG and make a fire post on the IG app. Emojis are recommended, but not required. Get people talking with only a sentence or two. Cryptic pictures are recommended. If your words aren’t being deciphered, written about, and constantly discussed next to water coolers and workplace kitchens, you have failed. Do it right. Do it Yadi style.

Rule #2: Calm a co-worker down who is having a rough time

Time and time again, Molina has taken the short walk from the plate to the pitching rubber to console, calm, or simply aid a teammate. It doesn’t matter if it’s rain, sleet, or sunshine… Yadi is there. Bases loaded in the fifth? Here he comes. Ninth inning jam? Boom, there he is. Do that for someone in your office today. Take that short walk, or chair push, over to the in-need soul, and give them a piece of your mind. Avoid mansplaining things that weren’t asked to be explained. Make it about them. Do what’s needed. Be like Yadi, a usually extremely hard thing to do, except for today.

Rule #1: Be smart

Don’t think too hard on this one. When asked for a one-word tag in the spring that described a strong baseball offense, Molina told his manager, “smart.” Follow that lead, and be smart. Be smart about the choices you make, the way you do things, and how you treat others. This isn’t for the “be smart, avoid Taco Bell” crowd that has surrounded me for the past 30 years on Earth. This is more important. Be smart with a bat in your hands, or where you decide to park before a game. This one is about the little things, but not exactly relegated to remembering to switch the laundry over to the washer instead of letting mold develop on your clothes.

Oct. 4 is now a big deal. It’s Yadier Molina day in St. Louis. Good day, everyone.

Ps. For Pujols Day, you can say “mang” instead of “man” for a whole day. It’s not a shot at his pronunciation of the word, only how an appreciation for how good it sounds. His spin on it, if you will. It became very popular in Cardinal Nation, and was the nickname the manual scoreboard crew gave him in 2001.

The only other option would be to use a printer, and make a half-baked machine joke.

Image Credit: Jeff Curry of USA Today