The St. Louis Cardinals won’t have a quiet offseason, though their winter may surprise a lot of fans. The Cardinals aren’t expected to contend in 2025, and they know that. As a result, the front office is eager to sell of elderly assets, such as Nolan Arenado. The Cards have already noted that Paul Goldschmidt will likely sign elsewhere.
St. Louis is a team in transition, literally. John Mozeliak will leave after the 2025 season to make way for Chaim Bloom. Heck, Bloom already has a say in the moves the Cardinals are making this winter, and rightly so.
However, considering Walker’s importance to the organization’s future, his own statements about Mozeliak, as well as the lack of assistance he received from management along the road, are concerning.
“Talking to teammates and also just self-evaluation,” Walker indicated. “That’s truly what it’s been, along with talking to teammates and getting an outside perspective. Whether it’s Masyn (Winn), (Thomas Saggese), or (Mike Antico) from the minors, Nolan Gorman. Simply chatting to them and observing what they observe. Getting opinions from others.”
Oli Marmol and John Mozeliak get a say in Jordan Walker’s development
Manager Oli Marmol, who, for some reason, remains involved in Walker’s development, believes the 22-year-old is on the right route.
“We’re not there yet, but he is taking steps in that direction,” Marmol told me. “The homers are awesome, but him spitting on a 1-2 slider and being able to hold that position a little earlier or you can just tell he’s recognizing it a little earlier than usual — that’s also important.”
The home runs are awesome. What an excellent analysis!
Cardinals most recent hire won’t help matters with Jordan Walker
Perhaps most troubling was the Cardinals’ hiring of Brant Brown, who previously led one of baseball’s worst lineups with the Seattle Mariners. He was fired from that position, of course, and spent the 2023 season with the Miami Marlins.
“That was very important, someone that can relate to younger players and speak their language,” Mozeliak remarked. “No. 2, we also wanted somebody that had a larger breadth, if you will, in what they teach or how they teach.”
If you say so. Walker may have enough talent to break out on his own. Who knows? Maybe Brown will connect with the young Cardinals, providing them more guidance along the way. Knowing this front office, though, I would bet on the latter.
