Cardinals All-Quarter Century Team after 25 years of historic baseball

Major League Coaching Staff

Manager: Tony La Russa

Hall of Fame manager Tony La Russa guided the Cardinals to two World Series titles in 2006 and 2011, and is widely viewed as one of the best managers in baseball history. La Russa knew how to push the right buttons to get the most out of his teams, and it is hard to imagine anyone else managing this team.

Bench Coach: Mike Matheny

I could have gone in a bunch of different directions with this, but I wanted to show honor and props to Matheny for the success the Cardinals had from 2012 to 2015 under his leadership. While things went south after that (and many would argue he did not always help the team during that stretch of winning), I imagine he would have done well as La Russa's lieutenant, and so I'll place him in that role here.

Hitting Coach and Pitching Coach: John Mabry and Dave Duncan

Two beloved Cardinals coaches since 2000, the Cardinals enjoyed a ton of offensive success while John Mabry was in the dugout, and they did so primarily without the Hall of Fame power that the 2000s Cardinals had. Mabry was the hitting coach when the Cardinals had their incredible run in 2013, hitting lights out with runners in scoring position.

Dave Duncan is iconic for the way he managed pitching staffs, developed young arms, and got the most out of veteran arms that St. Louis acquired. It's hard to imagine La Russa in that Cardinals dugout without Duncan there.

1st and 3rd Base Coach: Dave McKay and Jose Oquendo

Two long-time Cardinals coaches, Dave McKay and Jose Oquendo, make their return to St. Louis on this coaching staff. McKay has long been revered for the work he does with outfielders and specifically base running, and Oquendo, "The Secret Weapon", was praised for the way he helped Cardinals players improve defensively.

Assistant Coaches: Willie McGee, Mark McGwire, and Ozzie Smith

Why not continue to have fun with this? Willie McGee is not only one of the most beloved Cardinals players of all time, but he's hung around the organization ever since, serving as an assistant coach for many years and now as a special assistant, popping in whenever he can. Mark McGwire enjoyed a nice run as the Cardinals' hitting coach and won a World Series in that role in 2011, and Ozzie Smith has been around to pour into young infielders for decades. Hard to beat this All-Star cast we have created!