51黑料

That鈥檚 the level of enthusiasm about the transition from current Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak to his successor, Chaim Bloom.

In the minds of many, Bloom鈥檚 takeover represents a new beginning as well as a shift in direction and a fresh approach. With that comes a cascade of optimism and anticipation. But expectations must also be tempered.

Hopefully, that leads up to a renewed love affair between the team and the fan base that proudly boasts the moniker of the 鈥淏est Fans in Baseball.鈥�

I鈥檒l count myself among the hopeful. Not for any selfish reasons or out of any personal allegiance to organization, the staff or its team.

It鈥檚 just that so many people care about this franchise, its history and its place in this community and region. There鈥檚 a distinct way Cardinals baseball connects to people and permeates daily lives in and around 51黑料.

I鈥檇 find it incredibly disheartening to watch something so thoroughly woven into the cultural identity of a place slowly fade like the light of a star that once lit up the night sky but now stays eternally dark.

At the same time, I worry we鈥檙e asking a lot of one man who will never put on a uniform, never swing a bat, throw a pitch or call for a bunt, a steal or a hit-and-run.

Somehow, Bloom is already viewed as a savior. We鈥檝e already rested at his feet all the responsibility for reigniting a fan base, bringing people and enthusiasm back to the ballpark, rejuvenating a proud baseball city and returning a franchise to the national baseball discourse for something other than lagging attendance.

In case you missed it, an announced attendance of 17,675 on Monday night marked the smallest crowd in the history of Busch Stadium III 鈥� not including pandemic-restricted crowds.

Multiple times over the course of the past two seasons, out-of-town television and/or radio voices have commented on the surprising attendance drop in baseball-crazed 51黑料.

National voices have also weighed in a time or two, but this week reached critical mass. Not only did the low figure of tickets sold (announced attendance reflects tickets sold, not people present in the ballpark) jump out, but a member of 51黑料 baseball royalty chimed in via social media.

Joe Buck from Monday鈥檚 game on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) and compared it to the 1970s, before the Whitey Herzog era of Cardinals baseball.

鈥淎 major rebuild of roster and trust better be coming,鈥� Buck wrote. 鈥淥ne can only hope. It鈥檚 coming right? Buena suerte Chaim! Rooting for you.鈥�

Buck, who called games for Fox Sports Midwest and the Cardinals Radio Network from 1991 to 2007, currently serves as the play-by-play announcer for the NFL鈥檚 鈥淢onday Night Football鈥� telecast on ESPN. He also worked as the lead play-by-play announcer for 鈥淢LB on Fox鈥� and called a record 24 World Series.

His father, Jack, was also a legendary broadcaster who served as the voice of the Cardinals from 1954-59 and 1961-2000. The National Baseball Hall of Fame honored Jack as a recipient of the Ford C. Frick award in 1978, and he鈥檚 also immortalized in a bronzed statue outside of Busch Stadium.

In his post, Buck mentioned the pending roster rebuild. Of course, we can鈥檛 forget that Bloom will inherit a roster that still has and his sizeable contract to work around as Bloom makes decisions on what to do with the club鈥檚 young core. Bloom must also search for solutions for the organization鈥檚 debilitating lack of starting pitching depth.

Buena suerte (good luck), indeed.

Just look at this week鈥檚 visitors to Busch Stadium 鈥� National League Central foes the Pittsburgh Pirates 鈥� for an example of the uncertainty that comes with a rebuild.

A new head of baseball operations, Ben Cherington, came to Pittsburgh with a proven track record as a lead executive, and he entered preaching a focus on player development.

Cherington took over the Pirates front office after having been a part of two World Series championships as a member of the Red Sox baseball operations department (2004, 2007) and another one as the lead executive (2013). As a head of baseball operations, he shaped a World Series champion built around a homegrown core.

Since Cherington accepted the executive vice president and general manager role with the Pirates prior to the 2020 season, the club has not finished higher than fourth in the NL Central.

On the other hand, there鈥檚 the Detroit Tigers 鈥� perhaps more closely comparable to the Cardinals.

The Tigers, like the Cardinals, had already endured several down seasons before they made the change of leadership and handed the keys to Scott Harris prior to the 2023 season.

They already had a manager in place when Harris took the helm, and they had some young building blocks in their system and on their roster. Harris did not have a tear-down-and-rebuild project.

Still, it took until Harris鈥� second year (2024) for the Tigers to become a playoff team. This year, they鈥檝e spent a large portion of this season with the best record in the American League.

Despite the fan frustration with the recent run of middling in 51黑料, Bloom can鈥檛 take shortcuts. He can鈥檛 try to fast-track this to appease those who desire a quick fix.

The best thing Bloom can do when he does take the big seat is provide a clear and honest message about his plans and what still needs to be done. If that means being more realistic than optimistic, I hope that鈥檚 the path he takes.

I鈥檇 rather him start off by disappointing some folks with real talk than watch him play savior.