St. Louis Cardinals: Seven Predictions For the 2017 Season

Mike Matheny will remain the St. Louis Cardinals’ skipper during the 2017 season and throughout the entirety of his current contract, which runs through 2020.

To be fair, this is more than just a prediction for the upcoming season; it’s a prediction about the remainder of Mike Matheny’s contract as manager. Shortly after the St. Louis Cardinals missed the playoffs for the first time during Matheny’s tenure, he signed a three-year contract extension which takes him through the 2020 season.

It’s easy to be critical of Matheny. From bullpen mismanagement to puzzling lineup selections to his obsession for double switches and bunts, he has increasingly been used as a punching bag for a particular group of Cardinals fans in recent years.

Matheny is far from a perfect manager. He’s made some erroneous in-game decisions that have cost the team wins in previous seasons. But let’s not forget what he’s accomplished in his first five years at the helm.

He’s the only manager in the history of baseball to lead his team to the postseason in his first four seasons. He has a 461-349 record from the dugout, good for a .569 winning percentage. No team performed better for its manager from 2012-2016.

His postseason record leaves something to be desired: it stands at 21-22. As the skipper, he’s made it to the World Series once, in 2013, and the National League Championship Series three times.

While Matheny has had success in leading four Cardinals teams to the postseason, the ultimate goal of a World Series Championship has thus far eluded him.

His success is quantifiable in his win-loss record since taking over for Hall-of-Famer Tony LaRussa. But that’s not the only reason he’ll be in the St. Louis dugout for at least four more seasons.

He has a great working relationship with General Manager John Mozeliak, and all indications are that players love playing for him. He’s a natural leader with a ‘let’s get down to business’ attitude that his guys appreciate. Moreover, he has never drawn unnecessary negative attention to the ball club.

Fans may be tired of his strategical errors, and the media may sneer at his standoffish attitude towards criticism, but at the end of the day, the guy’s been a winner in his five years as skipper.

Yes, he needs to win a World Series to turn around his favorability and reputation in St. Louis. He’ll get his chance in at least the next four seasons.