First the Patriots, now the Cardinals feeling fans’ wrath

FILE - In this Oct. 28, 2015, file photo, taken with a fisheye lens, St. Louis Cardinals take batting practice before Game 5 of baseball's World Series against the Boston Red Sox in St. Louis. Federal law enforcement authorities are investigating whether the Cardinals illegally hacked into a computer database of the Houston Astros to obtain information on players, a person familiar with the situation said Tuesday, June 16, 2015, in an unusual case involving two former division rivals in Major League Baseball. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File) FILE - In this Oct. 28, 2015, file photo, taken with a fisheye lens, St. Louis Cardinals take batting practice before Game 5 of baseball's World Series against the Boston Red Sox in St. Louis. Federal law enforcement authorities are investigating whether the Cardinals illegally hacked into a computer database of the Houston Astros to obtain information on players, a person familiar with the situation said Tuesday, June 16, 2015, in an unusual case involving two former division rivals in Major League Baseball. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)

By Associated Press June 18, 2015 4 min read

CINCINNATI (AP) – Mocking t-shirts are available online. Deprecating jokes are making the rounds. Social media is saturated with derogatory lines about the latest embarrassing predicament involving a model sports franchise.

Tom Brady and the New England Patriots? Nope. Football deflation is old news. This time, one of baseball’s top teams is the bull’s-eye of caustic tweets and gloating posts.

The St. Louis Cardinals have some explaining to do. And some ribbing to take – good-natured and otherwise.

Revelations that federal authorities are investigating whether the 11-time World Series champs hacked into another team’s database have provided an opening for those who enjoy seeing a successful team put in an awkward spot.

“Just like the Patriots, I feel,” said Jack Sauter, a White Sox fan from DeKalb, Illinois, attending Chicago’s game against Pittsburgh on Wednesday night. “That really hurt them with Deflate-gate. They’re still feeling that.”