7 former St. Louis Cardinals who have recently called out the organization

OF Tommy Pham

Tommy Pham is known throughout the league as a fiery personality, someone who isn't afraid to speak (or act) impulsively and with strong emotion. He used that fire to speak out against the Cardinals after his first stint with the team.

Pham was a rookie during the 2014 season, but he was already much older than other prospects in the organization. At 26 years old, he was two, three, or even four years older than other young players like Randal Grichuk, Stephen Piscotty, and Oscar Taveras, and the St. Louis Cardinals were more apt to see what they had in these high-ceiling prospects.

Therefore, Pham was often leapfrogged for these young players, and that rubbed him the wrong way. "I said, ‘You know what, I’m the best mother------ on this team, and you guys don’t even know it,’” remembered Pham. “I said those exact words. They told me things happen, I’ll get some at-bats. I just had to wear it.

Things between Pham and the Cardinals appear to be mended, as he was a spark immediately after being acquired at the 2024 trade deadline for the Cardinals.

UTIL Tommy Edman

Tommy Edman is still finding ample success in the majors, but it wasn't long ago that he, too, spoke out against the Cardinals' game preparation for its players.

Edman was a super-utility player for the Cardinals from 2019 through 2023, and he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers in a three-team trade that netted the Cardinals starting pitcher Erick Fedde and the aforementioned Tommy Pham. Edman was beloved by Cardinal fans, and he did whatever it took to help the team find success during his tenure in St. Louis.

However, Edman was candid in 2021 when speaking about how the club helped batters prepare for the game. "I don’t think we’ve necessarily done the greatest job of making a game plan for how guys are gonna throw us day by day and working on things pregame," said Edman. "I think we're going to start to implement a few more of those things."

This was a comment about former hitting coach Jeff Albert and his staff. Albert's seat was hot at the time due to the underperforming offense, and Edman's comments didn't help the former coach's job security.