The St. Louis Cardinals, in recent years, have been constructed poorly.
The results in 2023 and 2024 prove there’s a bad foundation.
So the ownership likely will remodel.
Yet it is bringing back the same architect?
John Mozeliak will return to the Cardinals as president of baseball operations, per the reporting of the Post-Dispatch's Derrick Goold. "Mo" has one more year on his contract. Chaim Bloom, the former Rays and Red Sox executive, will serve a larger role in the St. Louis front office. And for 2025, the Cardinals plan to shift direction, notably focusing on building the farm system, Goold reported. At 2 p.m. Monday, the Cardinals will hold a news conference to explain more.
But right away, Bloom should be the boss. The only boss. The new boss.
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If the Cardinals are going to change their ways immediately, then shouldn’t Bloom make every major decision immediately?
And look, the Cardinals’ messaging has been off in recent seasons, but this move might be the worst public relations move possible. Bringing back Mozeliak will enrage the fan base. Enrage.
After many years of success under Mo, the Cardinals lost their grip and dominance. They missed the playoffs in 2016, 2017 and 2018. In 2019, they won a lone playoff series. In 2020, 2021 and 2022, they made the postseason and won a lone playoff game. And, of course, the Cards missed the playoffs in 2023 and 2024.
Mozeliak oversaw all of this.
The fans booed him at the final game in 2023. The fans booed him at the first game in 2024. That was before the 2024 season played out.
And this season, attendance went way down.
It appears the Cardinals are going to try to sell their fans on some sort of an optimistic rebuilding plan. But if fans were mad in 2024, when the team was still vying for the postseason, why would they come to rebuilding games in 2025 knowing the person in charge is the person who caused the rebuilding in the first place?
Cardinals Chairman Bill DeWitt Jr., of course, is loyal to Mozeliak. The Cards won a bunch of ballgames with teams built by Mo. The Cards won the 2011 World Series and the 2013 National League pennant. Ballpark Village has expanded, and St. Louis baseball became even bigger tourism in Missouri (which meant more money for DeWitt).
Still, it just seems tone deaf to bring back Mozeliak to make important decisions after all this erosion with the organization. Why not start fresh?
As for DeWitt himself, it’s expected that the chairman will attend the news conference. What will we learn Monday about his state of mind regarding his franchise? I think he owes the fans some verbalized clarity. And perhaps even a bit of emotion, too. Like, is he actually as mad as the fans are?
I know showing emotion isn't his thing in public. And yes, it’s his team — he can do what he wants. He makes the hirings, regardless of what any columnist says or anybody on social media says. But this is a pivotal juncture in team history — and surely he sees and hears the anger from the fan base.
Also in Goold’s article was news that manager Oliver Marmol is coming back. Although I’m likely in the minority around town, I think Marmol is the man for the job.
I’ve spent my career so far around managers and head coaches in every major sport. Marmol impresses me with his fascinating thinking about baseball and life. He’s relatable to the players and speaks with command but, when necessary, compassion.
And hey, he won a division title three years ago.
Goold reported that “discussions about the makeup of Marmol's staff for 2025 are ongoing, though some decisions are expected by Monday.â€
Hitting coach Turner Ward can’t be back, can he? The Cards finished 22nd in on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS), home runs and run scored this season. Nolan Arenado hit only 16 homers, and Paul Goldschmidt was a grand disappointment, too.
Nolan Gorman and Jordan Walker, expected to be key bats in 2024, were so off that they were sent to the minors. After a first half with an OPS in the .800s, Alec Burleson had an OPS in the .600s in the second half.
And infamously, the Cardinals were horrendous with runners in scoring position — the only team worse was the White Sox, which was one of the worst teams in baseball history.
Walker and Gorman remain supremely talented young players who, ultimately, can lift a franchise. Why not give them a new hitting coach and new hitting department to fix their swings and deficiencies?
Pitching coach Dusty Blake and his department deserve to see this thing through. The Cardinals' bullpen had a 3.64 ERA, sixth-best in Major League Baseball. And the bullpen thrived even though Keynan Middleton (signed for $5 million) was injured all year and Giovanny Gallegos faltered so much that the club got rid of him.
Cardinals starting pitchers finished 20th in Major League Baseball with a 4.33 ERA, though that number was marred by many of the starts by Miles Mikolas, who finished with a 5.35 ERA, second-worst in either league.
Naturally, there are innumerable decisions to be made regarding the rotation for 2025.
And regarding the roster.
And regarding, really, everything.
And these decisions should be made by the person in charge for the future — not the person likely in his last season.