The Mets had a plan to rip the Cardinals front office apart, but it failed

It appears the New York Mets tried to tear apart the Cardinals front office, but their plan failed. 

The St. Louis Cardinals’ front office has been headed by John Mozeliak and Michael Girsch for the better part of the last decade. But the New York Mets, who’s search for a president of baseball operations has featured many of baseball’s top candidates, tried to split them apart.

And they failed once again.

The Mets expressed interest in Girsch, the Cardinals’ general manager, but he turned them down and is no longer under consideration, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

Despite Girsch being a prominent member of the Cardinals’ front office, we don’t know how much this would have impacted them. Most of the moves the team makes are attributed to Mozeliak, their president of baseball operations, and it’s unclear what, if any, role that Girsch played in them.

But it would have been a blow, considering that Mozeliak trusts Girsch enough to be his unquestioned No. 2 in the front office. And it would have meant more significant changes for the Cardinals early this offseason, with manager Mike Shildt also being fired and replaced by bench coach Oli Marmol.

However, the Cardinals won’t have to worry about that — at least for now — considering that Girsch is out of the running. They will be able to continue their offseason planning that is expected to include a serious run at a premier shortstop, perhaps Trevor Story, and will have their top two decision makers leading the way.

The Mets search, meanwhile, has led them through the NL Central. They targeted David Stearns and Matt Arnold, the Brewers’ top two executives, but were also shut down. It remains to be seen who the Mets hire, or if they indeed are able to bring someone on, but it’s become increasingly clear that it won’t be coming from the NL Central.

Much to the delight of the Cardinals and Brewers.