A previous ante — those were the days

ST. LOUIS — Call it a product of the Cardinals’ recent October success, but the traditional friendly bet between rival mayors seems to have lost its zing this year.

Previous playoff appearances by the Cardinals — and, in better times, the Rams — have led Mayor Francis Slay to put an impressive ante of St. Louis goods on the line: Imo’s pizza, Ted Drewes, Bissinger chocolate and, for the heartache of defeat, TUMS.

Now that’s a bounty that spells relief.

By now, no one should be better than Slay — a Cardinals season ticket-holder — at these stilted exchanges between cities. The Cardinals have been to the post-season five times since Slay took office in 2001, participating in 11 play-off series match-ups, including two World Series appearances.

When the Cardinals last faced the Dodgers in the National League Division Series, Slay’s wager with with then-mayor James K. Hahn included toasted raviolis from the Pasta House and a case of Budweiser.

For this year’s match-up between the Dodgers and the Cards — which begins tonight in L.A. — Slay has bet more toasted ravioli, a Build-A-Bear animal, and a Twitter T-shirt.

Woo-hoo.

Current L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa does not seem too enthused either — with less than 10 hours before first pitch, he still has not declared his end of the agreement, which apparently will be announced — where else? — on his Twitter page.

Wouldn’t it be fun if Villaraigosa put some real stakes on the line: A star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, lunch with Larry David, a bottle of genuine valley smog. (OK, they can keep that.)

Either way, it might not matter. Does anybody ever collect on these wagers?

Maybe, but, I wouldn’t bet on it.