5 front office missteps that defined the 2024 Cardinals

The extension of Oli Marmol

Oli Marmol is not a bad manager. Let's get that out of the way. He has made some strange decisions, such as choosing to use Brandon Crawford as a pinch-hitter when he was the clear-cut worst option in a game-deciding at-bat, but overall, Marmol has done a respectable job, especially for a team that has been in so many one-run games. But the team's decision to hand Marmol a two-year extension at the start of the season doesn't look like it will age well.

Marmol and John Mozeliak appear to be at odds when it comes to the handling of a critical piece to the organization in the person of Jordan Walker. The two had separate interviews with Tom Ackerman in August, and they provided starkly different opinions on how to handle Walker, with Marmol saying Walker hit left-handers better than their current starting outfield — an untrue claim, as Lars Nootbaar and Brendan Donovan have superior numbers against southpaws — and Mozeliak stating that Walker had to play every day if he was going to be in the major leagues.

The conflicting opinions of Mozeliak and Marmol don't portend well for Marmol; fans only need to look back three years to see how "philosophical differences" with Mozeliak led the previous manager, Mike Shildt, to get the boot. If he and Marmol can't agree regarding Walker's use, Mozeliak may go a different direction and be forced to eat Marmol's contract.

The now frequently derided words of Bill DeWitt Jr., where he said that .500 baseball is not acceptable in St. Louis, are being put to the test. Mozeliak placed his trust in Marmol to handle the team through 2026, but the overall results and their opposing viewpoints don't paint a rosy picture for the future.

The Cardinals have been a mess over the past two seasons, and the front office deserves a significant portion of the blame. With Mozeliak likely in the chair for one more year, it's hard to see his tenure finishing on a high note. Maybe he has one more trick up his sleeve.