Cardinals and the First Lady Celebrate The St. Louis Cardinals were at the White House on Tuesday to celebrate their World Series championship but shared the moment with Michelle Obama - an avowed Chicago Cubs fan - to mark her 48th birthday. Despite her loyalty to one of her home teams - President Obama is a fan of the other, the Chicago White Sox - Mrs. Obama willingly joined him and Jill Biden, wife of Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr., to honor the Cards not only because of their championship victory but also because of the team's work with military families. Mrs. Obama and Mrs. Biden together promote the administration's Joining Forces initiative to encourage Americans" support for military personnel and their families. Also at the White House, having flown in with the team, was Lance Cpl. James Sperry, a wounded Marine who served in Iraq, and his young daughter, Hannah, who watched the first game of last fall's World Series with Mrs. Obama and Mrs. Biden. Before Mrs. Obama could open the proceedings, shouts of "Happy Birthday!" greeted her. When she introduced the "sports fan in chief," Mr. Obama joked, "When we first married, it was a little controversial that she was 20 years younger than me, but now it seems to have worked out O.K." Mr. Obama often jokes that he has gone old and gray in his job, but in truth he is just two years younger than his wife. The team presented each of the Obamas with a World Series jersey with their names and the number 44 on the back, and World Series bats. "I'm a little bit worried about giving my wife a bat, though," Mr. Obama said. "I'll take my bat," Mrs. Obama interjected to applause. Later, the president took Mrs. Obama and several friends, including Valerie Jarrett, an adviser and confidante to both, to BLT Steak, a restaurant two blocks from the White House.