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Oliver Marmol starts the Cardinals’ offseason plans off with a bang
In a pregame press conference before the final game of the 2023 season, Oliver Marmol had some stark words about the team's offseason plans. Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post Dispatch asked Marmol what the first step was towards competition next year. Marmol's response was terse and strong.
With the pregame ceremony over, there was a hammer of a quote from Marmol this morning:
— Jeff Jones (@jmjones) October 1, 2023
"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."
While the first half of the comment is relatively typical for managers, the second half is where the answer becomes a "hammer", according to Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat. Marmol doesn't state any one player or players who could have a selfish attitude on the team; however, some players immediately come to mind.
Speculate who you want, but it is clear that management and the front office are looking ahead to 2024 the moment game 162 of the 2023 season is over. The Cardinals have a lot of work to do and a lot of ground to make up to field a competitive team in 2024, but it seems like the first step is to remove the troublesome players currently in the locker room. Once the "weeds" have been removed, outside players can be brought in to beef up the roster.
You can stay tuned all offseason to Redbird Rants for coverage of all things related to the St. Louis Cardinals. There will be plenty of quotes and information in the coming weeks regarding what the Cardinals may be up to, and a full offseason preview will be coming on Monday morning from Site Expert Josh Jacobs.