Chaim Bloom's read on Cardinals legends may be correct after Oli Marmol extension

The idea of a legend captaining the St. Louis Cardinals has tantalized fans throughout Cardinals Nation ever since Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina took their first plunges into managing, taking charge of teams in the Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico, respectively. Pujols and Molina have both stated that they are ready to manage in the major leagues, and while the dream would be for them to take over the Cardinals, President of Baseball Operations Chaim Bloom clearly doesn't believe that's in the cards.

Oli Marmol's extension suggests Bloom doesn't think Pujols or Molina is the immediate solution.

The Cardinals provided manager Oli Marmol with an extension through 2028 and a club option for 2029, indicating their faith that the young skipper can guide the Cardinals through this rocky rebuild.
Bloom's hesitance to part with Marmol in favor of one of the Cardinals' fan favorites, while unpopular, may be for the best. The Cardinals are attempting to build from a new foundation and will see plenty of growing pains, and throwing a first-year manager into the fray, especially one with as much winning on their resumes as these two have, could lead to some frustrating moments from players with minimal exposure to extended failure.

Molina in particular may have a difficult time with this transition, especially with the demands of the media. Molina subscribed to the Tony La Russa school of "the less said to the media, the better," and it's easy to imagine him getting fed up with questions from reporters after the losses pile up. Bloom may not believe Molina would be up to the task of dealing with reporters every day. As for Pujols, while he may be more open to media questions, his personal services contract with the Los Angeles Angels could be a major obstacle to his returning to St. Louis.

With Marmol seemingly in tow for the next few seasons, Molina will have a decision to make regarding whether he would like to remain as a special assistant to Bloom, arriving at spring training to help with player instruction and showing up for a few regular season games, or if he'd be interested in jumping ship to another team with a managerial vacancy. The same goes with Pujols if the Angels decide to pivot from new manager Kurt Suzuki. Cardinals fans would undoubtedly feel betrayed if that were to happen, but in a rebuild, fans can't expect the team to throw them a bone.

If the Cardinals find themselves primed to compete in 2029, there's still a chance that Bloom will replace Marmol with someone who has a winning pedigree or who Bloom believes can take the team over the top, but it doesn't seem likely that Molina, whom many teams will attempt to lure away from St. Louis, or Pujols, whose contract with the Angels runs through 2032, will be the ones leading the charge.