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Now, Frederickson’s pending departure also is having a major effect on the operation.

“BenFred,� as he’s known by colleagues and readers, is leaving the sports media business, as he'll become an editorial strategist for BJC Health System. But he’s not quite done at the newspaper and its website, STLtoday.com. He plans to write a farewell piece to be published Sunday, and his final column is set for Monday when he’ll offer his thoughts on the Missouri-Illinois Braggin’ Rights basketball game in St. Louis.

“I’m ready to try something new, and I’m excited about it,� he said. “I’m going to look back and be very happy with my time at the P-D. I’m proud of that.�

Post-Dispatch sports editor Roger Hensley is acting quickly to fill Frederickson’s slot, moving current Cardinals beat writer Lynn Worthy into the columnist position. Also, Daniel Guerrero will join the Post-Dispatch’s Cards coverage roster that’s led by Derrick Goold. Guerrero had been on the Cards beat part time while also covering minor league baseball the past two seasons.

Worthy “will do an outstanding job,� Frederickson said. “People have gotten to know him through his work covering the Cardinals, and now they’re going to see the full Lynn. I’m excited to read it.�

Frederickson recalled that Guerrero, now 27, “was so young when he came to us. He’s grown every single year and it’s been so fun to watch him grow, and this is the next step for him. He’s earned it. Both guys, I’m proud to call them friends, and I’m excited where they take us.�

Still, the department is losing a valuable member.

“To me, Ben was much bigger than just the big events and moments he covered so adeptly, or the award hardware bestowed upon him,� Hensley said in a note to the staff this week. “He was a tireless reporter while serving a columnist role. And when writing, whether it was something hard-hitting, a peek behind the curtain, a look into the crystal ball or an interesting tale told — he brought strong critical thinking and a willingness to always ‘hit the hole’ (take on the tough topics) on everything he was writing.�

Worthy, 42, has focused on the Cardinals over his two years in St. Louis, but he has followed the other teams he now will write about, too.

“It’s going to be a really good chance for me to get a full picture of the entire St. Louis sports scene,� he said.

He said his column style will be similar to that of Frederickson and Hochman, sometimes throwing zingers and other times taking a human-interest or analytical angle.

“The best way to do it is to come with the hammer when it’s necessary,� said Worthy, whose first column is set to appear in early January. “At the same time, I don’t think it helps to overuse the hammer. If you don’t do it all the time, then it’s more meaningful when you do do it. And feature writing is one of the things I feel I have done best over the years.�

Changing gears

Frederickson, 34, has experienced several significant life events since arriving at the P-D in 2015 and says his career-altering decision is based on a variety of factors.

“I feel like I’m ready to change gears and try to do a great job doing something else,� he said. “It’s a combination of how I’ve changed, how the (media) business has changed — everyone’s aware of that — and how my priorities have somewhat changed, too. It’s a combination of all of that ... I took a long time to sort through it.�

He will continue a family tradition in the medical field. His father and father-in-law are physicians, and his mother-in-law is a retired nurse.

It’s easy to see why some of his priorities are refocused.

“Since I’ve moved to St. Louis, I’ve gotten married and had a daughter (now 14 months old),� he said. “These are all great blessings.�

The birth of the couple’s child contributed to their familiarization with the BJC system, and he grew intrigued about a storytelling opportunity there.

“I found the work they do to be really inspiring,� he said. “I thought, ‘Well, if the skills that I have, if I could use them in a way that could help them in some way, I’d be interested.’ It grew from there.�

He will now turn his writing skills to items such as “a feature on a patient success story, a profile of an accomplished doctor or messaging targeted for patients and the public.�

Frederickson, who was named the 2023 Missouri ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵwriter of the Year by the National ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Media Association, has covered major sports events in St. Louis over the past decade. They include the city’s lawsuit against the Rams, the Blues’ run to the Stanley Cup and the arrival of Major League Soccer. But some of his favorite pieces were human-interest accounts involving people far from the spotlight.

“A lot of the stories I’m most proud of that I’ve written deal with that realm,� he said.

He has been in sports media since his college days, when he was awarded the Post-Dispatch’s Rick Hummel internship. That’s presented annually to a University of Missouri journalism student and is funded by the St. Louis chapter of the Baseball Writers Association of America. It’s named after legendary former baseball writer Rick Hummel — whom Frederickson came to know as a mentor and friend before “the Commish� died last year.

Frederickson said a huge thrill in those internship days was receiving kudos from former Post-Dispatch sports columnists Bernie Miklasz and Bryan Burwell.

“It was cool for Albert Pujols to answer your question,� he said, “but to get a compliment from those guys ...�

‘Talented and dedicated’

Frederickson also will leave KTRS (550 AM), where he has been a regular on sports shows and contributed to other programs. His last appearance will be Dec. 27, on a show that airs from 6-8 p.m., previewing the Missouri-Iowa matchup in the Music City Bowl.

ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ director Brendan Wiese said a replacement has not yet been hired for Frederickson, who has contributed at the station for seven years.

“We’re really going to miss him,� Wiese said. “He’s easily the most talented and dedicated co-host I’ve ever had. It’s been so much fun.�

ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ journalism has been such a big part of Frederickson’s work life that it even influenced his personal side.

He was introduced to his wife, Cassandra, by a sportswriter — Mizzou grad Dan Fleser — when both were working for the Knoxville (Tennessee) News Sentinel. Frederickson had additional sports-writing stops at a newspaper in Wyoming and in St. Louis, with Fox ÁñÁ«ÊÓƵ Midwest’s website, before joining the Post-Dispatch.

Now, instead of dissecting Mizzou’s transfer portal moves, the end of the Cardinals’ John Mozeliak era or the start of the Blues’ Jim Montgomery regime, BenFred will settle into more “normal� work.

And don’t expect to see him in the press box at Busch Stadium after he gets off his new job.

“There absolutely will be parts of it and people that I’ll miss,� he said. “That’s a part of you. But some of the things I love about what I do will be present in this new role. It will be writing and thinking critically about how to communicate things and trying to make people feel things. It just will be done in a different way. I’m excited about that.�