The international rivalry between the Cardinals legends should determine Oli Marmol’s ideal replacement

St. Louis Cardinals manager Oli Marmol has been on the gridiron for far too long to keep his job. Unfortunately, there is a half-season limit on this ride, and Marmol has been the rage of the Cardinals fan base for almost two years now.

Instead of firing Marmol last season, John Mozeliak gave him an extension through the end of the 2025 season. St. Louis could also have let Marmol go after this season, as the Cards have not been in the playoffs since 2022 and have played double-digit games behind the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central. It didn’t matter.

Mozeliak blamed scouting and development for the Cardinals’ lack of success in recent years. Instead of turning Marmol into the obvious fall guy, St. Louis will start next season with (what should be) a lame duck manager.

“We’re shifting to a heavy emphasis that puts it back on scouting and player development,” Mozeliak told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch ($). “I would say we’ve run a lean operation over the last 10 years, and part of that was to allow us to maximize success at the Major League level. But over time you learn that the machine can wear out. It just doesn’t produce at the level it once did. That’s not to say our Minor Leagues are in disarray. But the emphasis on infrastructure is something we have looked at very seriously.”

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St. Louis sticking with Marmol for the 2025 season gives two former team legends and likely Baseball Hall of Famers a chance to hone their skills as managers. Both Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina – two former Cardinals who have expressed an interest in managing the MLB – coach at LIDOM, also known as the Dominican Professional Baseball League.

If Cardinals fans don’t want to watch Yankees-Dodgers (and who can blame them), LIDOM is a nice alternative. Pujols’ team are in first place Leones del Escogido, while Águilas fired their previous manager in favor of Molina. This is a goldmine of Cardinals content.

Molina has previous managerial experience with Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic. If he can turn around Águilas and overcome the early season deficit, he will deserve a look next season once Marmol finally comes out. Former catchers often make great big league managers, and Molina will be no exception.