51黑料

JUPITER, Fla.聽鈥� Oliver Marmol鈥檚 days as a favored punching bag of 51黑料 sports fans could reach a fever pitch this summer, mostly because of circumstance. The Cardinals manager regularly sits atop a hot seat, but this winter, that position transitioned from simmering to scorching.

He's going to manage, essentially, a rebuilding team without the cover of a full-scale rebuild, and he鈥檒l do so with a major front office change on the horizon. John Mozeliak will step down as the club's president of baseball operations, and former Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays executive Chaim Bloom will take over as the president of baseball operations following this season.

Meanwhile, Cardinals ownership and the current front office have set up聽Marmol for an epic tightrope walk this year. From the moment the season starts, he鈥檒l be in a precarious position at the helm of a ballclub that has a long and illustrious track record of winning, coming off back-to-back seasons without postseason play and facing an organizational mandate to approach this season with long-term thinking and a big-picture focus.

鈥淢anaging in the big leagues is hard,鈥� Mozeliak said. 鈥淢anaging a team in transition may be harder. I think his approach, our approach with our coaches, (they) understand that they can make an impact even if it doesn鈥檛 always show up in the wins and losses.鈥�

Despite the stated intention from ownership to set the franchise on a path for long-term success, the roster still contains a mix of established veteran players along with several young potential stars. The veteran presence of players such as Nolan Arenado and Willson Contreras as well as several veteran pitchers led by Sonny Gray will prevent the team from going into a full-blown tank mode.

Marmol, now entering his fourth season as skipper, must strive to win games in the present while steering a course for the future. It鈥檚 not an unprecedented perch for a manager, but he must have trust and patience from the front office.

The Baltimore Orioles hired Brandon Hyde to manage their team through a rebuilding period, and his teams went 131-253 in his first three seasons (one of those was a 60-game season). They endured a pair of 100-loss seasons. They didn鈥檛 post a winning record until his fourth season.

The Pittsburgh Pirates selected Derek Shelton as the manager to guide the club through a rebuild under general manager Ben Cherington. In five seasons under Shelton, including one 60-game season, they鈥檝e gone 294-414 with a pair of 100-loss seasons. He received a contract extension early in the 2023 season.

Hyde and Shelton have been described by their baseball operations heads as being partners with the front office, and those managers have been credited with establishing processes, fostering a playing style and creating environments important to their franchise's larger goals.

Last spring, Marmol and the Cardinals agreed to a contract extension through the 2026 season. So he's scheduled to be part of their future beyond this season.

Of course, the final say on that will come down to a boss that isn't even currently running the organization.

The Cardinals declared early this offseason that decisions on playing time and roster construction will take into account the best long-term outcome for both the player and the organization.

So how should Marmol鈥檚 performance be judged this season?

鈥淚 think, internally, the way we鈥檙e going to look at it is: Is he actually taking the approach of trying to think both short view and long view?鈥� Mozeliak said. 鈥淚 mean, at the end of the day, he鈥檚 responsible for winning and losing, but you also know that sometimes your hands are tied when it comes to absolute winning.鈥�

Might Marmol make in-game decisions based on what may benefit the team in future seasons, regardless of what might be the best move to affect winning an individual game?

鈥淚t鈥檒l be a good balance,鈥� Marmol said. 鈥淚 think there鈥檚 enough opportunities that present themselves during 162 (games) to be able to do both, but yeah, there鈥檚 certain times where the game may call for something but big picture takes precedence over that.

鈥淪o we鈥檒l make the most of those opportunities.鈥�

The decision to pinch-hit for a player or not pinch-hit for a player might not simply come down to the matchup. It also could get filtered through the prism of how the organization sees the player鈥檚 long-term role and what best prepares him for that role. Same with a defensive replacement or a pitching change.

Marmol and Mozeliak point out that it鈥檚 not as though the options off the bench will be older veteran players. Choosing to go to a young player off the bench also is a choice that might aid that player's development.

In recent years, offensive struggles and the pursuit of wins have caused the Cardinals to demote young sluggers such as Nolan Gorman and Jordan Walker to the minors.

The edict for this season will be that those players need to play through their ups and downs in hopes of either coming out on the other side or allowing the organization to determine that those players can鈥檛 succeed long-term at this level.

鈥淭he resources that are provided to him聽鈥� the depth that鈥檚 provided to him聽鈥� is not something that he can go out and provide on his own,鈥� Mozeliak said of Marmol. 鈥淪o he has to play the hand he鈥檚 dealt. But having the mindset that, yes, he鈥檚 going to try to make sure that all these young guys get at-bats. Even if some guys are struggling, they鈥檙e still going to get playing time. But he can鈥檛 lose his clubhouse either by not trying to win.

鈥淚t鈥檚 just a very fine line to walk. In terms of how the club will evaluate him, it鈥檚: Is he able to walk that line? I certainly have a lot of confidence in him doing so."

This article is part of the 51黑料 Cardinals season preview section, which will be in print on Sunday, March 23.