3 players whom Oli Marmol may be wanting to "weed out" of the Cardinals' clubhouse
St. Louis Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol had much to say about the 2023 season and his vision for 2024. This led to some questionable statements.
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The offseason has just started for the St. Louis Cardinals and it feels like everyone is finally being open about how the season went. Adam Wainwright revealed his shoulder injury during the whole season, Mozeliak and the DeWitts are deep-diving into their approach to the pitching department as a whole, and much of the organization is vocally showing their frustrations toward the season as a whole. The very fiery manager Oliver Marmol has made the biggest noise so far.
In a recent interview with St Louis Dispatch’s Derrick Goold, Oli Marmol was asked what the first step is for the team to compete in 2024. Marmol responded:
“I want a clubhouse full of guys that has one thing on their minds, and it’s not themselves. It’s winning a championship. So, you start out by weeding those out.”
Most people in management reply to these types of questions opportunistically and vaguely to stay open-ended and not create drama from a misleading headline. Marmol was very blunt with this response which shows the character this guy has. Oli doesn’t mess around and says it how it is. So with that in mind………who is he referring to?
Tyler O'Neill is surely on that list
The most obvious player is Tyler O’Neill. This relationship has been in trouble from the very beginning of the season and never recovered. O’Neill confidently wanted to prove his worth to the organization by claiming the CF position and staying healthy to return to his 2021 production. Instead, we got an injury-riddled season of questionable injuries and terrible production at the plate.
From my personal experience with O'Neill, he seems like a pretty chill dude who gets along with teammates. But within the organization, it looks like he is not a team player and is selfish. Given opportunity after opportunity and it keeps failing, this might be the end of Tyler O’Neill in St. Louis.
A recent report speculated that Ryan Helsley could have been in that group
Another option could be Ryan Helsley. His case is not as strong as it is for O'Neill, but it warrants thinking about it. He has missed significant time this season with a forearm injury and has received criticism for pitching last postseason with the pitching finger that cost Game 1 of the 2022 NL Wild Card Series. Helsley is also not afraid to voice his opinion.
He has appeared several times on Foul Territory and has been unfiltered given the podcast's approach. In one interview, he sides with the players who voted to remove Contreras from his catching duties due to his game-calling abilities. As we learned throughout the season, the pitchers were not good because of their performance.
Belleville News-Democrat reporter Jeff Jones put Helsley's name to this the other day, as someone who has received pushback from Marmol in the past. This by no means makes Helsley a clubhouse issue, I'm not sure anyone would agree with that, but it appears Marmol may have friction with him.
Jack Flaherty seems to have fit the bill
There is only one other player who I think fits this quote and he is no longer with the team: Jack Flarehty.
Flaherty has been vocal his whole career and carries confidence on his shoulders. He has been declining in durability and performance over the last several seasons. In 2023, he really showed his ego when he led the charge to firing Willson Contreras from the catcher's position. He believed Contreras did not understand the pitcher’s repertoire and was lacking in game calling.
The organization sided with this opinion and moved the new player to DH as a scapegoat. To end the season, Contreras led the team in WAR and the pitching staff ended up being bad because of the players assembled by John Mozeliak. Jack Flaherty ended up getting traded for prospects to Baltimore and was so bad that he was moved to a bullpen role.
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This quote is very intriguing and has everyone thinking of who Marmol wants to be weeded out. Who do you think Marmol is referring to? Let us know on our Redbird Rants social media platforms!