Cardinals manager Oli Marmol is ripping a page out of Mike Shildt's book

Mike Shildt has nearly reached martyr status among many fans of the St. Louis Cardinals. Shildt, the team's manager from 2018 to 2021, was at the helm when the Cardinals embarked on the longest winning streak in team history, churning out 17 consecutive victories in September to make a run to the postseason. Despite the team's historic accomplishment, Shildt was fired after the season, with President of Baseball Operations John Mozeliak citing "philosophical differences" as the reason for the dismissal.

The Cardinals are in need of another torrid stretch to secure a playoff spot in 2024, and when it comes to lineup construction, manager Oli Marmol is using a similar strategy to that of his predecessor when the Cardinals went on their improbable streak in 2021.

Shildt was heavily reliant on veteran players during his tenure in St. Louis, placing them in the lineup even when they struggled for long stretches. Now, with Nolan Gorman demoted to Memphis, Tommy Pham looks to be in line for a larger role as Brendan Donovan shifts to second base, and it wouldn't be surprising to see Pham receive more playing time down the stretch than Victor Scott. The Cardinals are also forgoing the thought of bringing Jordan Walker back up and are instead planning to provide more plate appearances for Matt Carpenter.

The Cardinals are bypassing the idea of clearing a 40-man roster spot to promote Thomas Saggese, instead choosing to roll with Jose Fermin, who has major league experience but has shown precious little in terms of batting at the top level.

Marmol was the bench coach during Shildt's time as the Cardinals manager, and given the Cardinals' dire situation, it's understandable that Marmol would take this route with his lineup in hopes that lightning strikes twice. However, it's worth wondering whether the possibility to squeak into the playoffs is too remote for it to be worth delaying younger players' chances to receive more exposure to the major leagues.

Shildt's attempt to go for broke with the veterans paid off as the 2021 season wound down. As the Cardinals reach full-on panic mode, Marmol will attempt to conjure up enough old-time devil magic to replicate that memorable run of '21.