A's Stephen Piscotty to Make Emotional to St. Louis Against Cardinals

For the second series in a row, there will be an emotional reunion in St. Louis.

This past weekend, Albert Pujols returned to Busch Stadium for the first time since he left the Cardinals in 2011, as the Angels paid a rare visit to the Gateway City. Now it's Stephen Piscotty's turn to face his former team when the A's and Cards open a two-game series Tuesday night.

Piscotty certainly doesn't figure to receive the massive welcome that Pujols saw -- the latter is arguably the greatest player in Cardinals history -- but considering the circumstances of his departure, he will likely enjoy a similar sentiment.

Piscotty, 28, spent his first three major league seasons in St. Louis, tallying 38 home runs and 163 RBI with a .784 OPS. Following the 2017 season, however, the Cardinals famously traded the Pleasanton native to Oakland so that he could be closer to his mother Gretchen, who had been diagnosed with ALS.

Sadly, she passed away in 2018.

To this day, Piscotty remains extremely grateful to the Cardinals organization for granting his trade request and allowing him to spend that extra time with his mother.

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Piscotty has already experienced some emotional at-bats following his mother's passing. His very first at-bat resulted in a single, following a lengthy standing ovation from the Oakland crowd. Then, in his first at-bat since returning from the bereavement list, Piscotty homered over the Green Monster in Boston.

It's sure to be another powerful moment Tuesday night when Piscotty steps into the batter's box at Busch Stadium.

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