Despite the Cardinals' major league success in the 21st century spanning well before Mozeliak's tenure as GM ––they have just one losing season and nine playoff appearances since 2000 ––the farm system had lagged behind until more recent seasons. Between 2000 and 2007,the highest rank the farm system garnered was 21st;between 2002 and 2005 it "ranked 30th,28th,28th and 30th." [37] [38] After 2011, Baseball America bestowed the Cardinals franchise with their first Organization of the Year award. [39] Seventeen of the 25 players on the 2011 playoff roster were players who had spent their entire careers with the Cardinals. [40] ESPN's Keith Law and Baseball Prospectus also ranked the Cardinals organization #1 for the 2013 season. [41] [42]
Trade for Peter Bourjos and Jhonny Peralta contract
After making it to the 2013 World Series only to lose to the Boston Red Sox,the Cardinals addressed weaknesses the following offseason at shortstop and center field. First,they traded Freese and relief pitcher Fernando Salas to the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim for center fielder Peter Bourjos and right fielder Randal Grichuk. [48]
Just two days later,they signed free agent shortstop Jhonny Peralta to a four-year,$53 million contract. [49] The Cardinals still had yet to find consistency at shortstop since the days of Rentería,and Peralta was seen as a player who could bring that consistency. However,the signing drew scrutiny because he had served a 50-game suspension for his connection to the Biogenesis scandal earlier in the season.
Fellow players such as Brad Ziegler of the Arizona Diamondbacks publicly complained that the 50-game suspension was not enough of a deterrent,because it appeared to fail to prevent players who violated the collective bargaining agreement's banned substances use policy to receive compensation for their performances equal to those who had not been found to violate the policy. Mozeliak defended the contract,stating that the Cardinals were not self-appointed "morality police". He further explained that "character and makeup are something we weigh into our decision-making. In his case,he admitted what he did,he took responsibility for it. I feel like he has paid for his mistakes,and obviously if he were to make another one,then it would be a huge disappointment." [50]
The Cardinals signed All-Star second baseman Matt Carpenter to a six-year,$52 million extension on March 6,2014. Included was an option for 2020 worth $18.5 million. The year prior,he led the major leagues in hits,runs scored,and doubles while batting .318 and becoming a regular at a position he had yet to play as professional. Mozeliak cited his work ethic as another factor in the extension. [51]
On April 12,2014,the Cardinals announced they had extended Mozeliak's contract by two years through the 2018 season. [52] They won the division this season but fell to the Giants in the NLCS.
Reports surfaced on June 16,2015,that the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were reviewing an alleged incident involving Cardinals' front office officials hacking into the Houston Astros' database of players,scouting reports and proprietary statistics. It was regarded as the first known case of corporate espionage involving computer network hacking in professional sports. [53] The matter wasn't adjudicated until January 30,2017 when Commissioner Rob Manfred ruled that the Cardinals forfeit its top two selections in that year's MLB Draft (numbers 56 and 75 in the second and competitive balance round B respectively) and $2 million in damages to the Astros. [54]
On September 19,2015,the Cardinals became the first team in MLB to clinch a playoff spot that season. It also extended a franchise record of five consecutive seasons of reaching the postseason,a record which the club had set the previous season. [55]
On June 30,2017,Mozeliak was promoted to a new role that many teams were creating:president of baseball operations,while assistant GM Mike Girsch was named the new vice president and general manager of the Cardinals. These promotions came with contract guarantees for both through the 2020 season. [56]
After a three-year absence from the postseason,the Cards won the NL Central in 2019 and defeated the Atlanta Braves in a five game NLDS. However,they went on to fall in a four game sweep to the Washington Nationals in the NLCS.
In 2020,the Cardinals would only end up playing 58 total games due to COVID-19 pandemic that had reached American shores in late January. The Cardinals were hit particularly hard by COVID,with many games being delayed and cancelled due to persistent outbreaks in the clubhouse. [1] As a result of the shortened season,MLB expanded the playoff format for 2020 to eight teams in each league,in which the Cardinals landed themselves in as the five-seed team,finishing 2nd in the NL Central with a final record of 30–28. The Cardinals visited San Diego for a 3-game Wild Card series,where they took Game 1 but fell in Games 2 and 3 to lose the series and end their season.
In 2021 the Cardinals finished the season at 90–72,with help from a franchise-record 17-game winning streak in September to put them into the postseason. [5] The team also was the first to have five players win Gold Glove Awards in the same season,with those being first baseman Paul Goldschmidt,second baseman Tommy Edman,third baseman Nolan Arenado,left fielder Tyler O'Neill and center fielder Harrison Bader. [7] In the NL Wild Card Game,the Cardinals faced the 106-win Los Angeles Dodgers,where both teams battled each other for eight innings in a 1-1 ballgame before Alex Reyes surrendered a walk-off 2-run homerun to Chris Taylor,ending the Cardinals historic season. [10] Eight days later,the Cardinals dismissed Mike Shildt,who had been manager since 2018,and elevated bench coach Oliver Marmol in his place. [11]
The Return of Albert Pujols,Later Years,and Departure
In March 2022,Mozeliak and the Cardinals worked a deal with free agent and franchise player Albert Pujols for him to return on a 1-year,$2.5 million deal to finish his career with other franchise legend Yadier Molina. [12]
In the first year of managing for Oliver Marmol,the Cardinals were guided to a 93–69 record,which was enough to win them the NL Central for the first time since 2019. Throughout the year the team had several individual successes and milestones,which most notably included Albert Pujols' 700th career homerun in a 11–0 victory vs. the Dodgers in Los Angeles on September 23. [14] On September 14,Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina made their MLB-record 325th start as battery mates,breaking the record previously held by the Detroit Tigers pair of Mickey Lolich and Bill Freehan. [15] First baseman Paul Goldschmidt won the NL MVP,and third baseman Nolan Arenado was a MVP finalist.
Going into the postseason as the 3-seed,the Cardinals were the favorites at home against the Philadelphia Phillies,who had made the postseason as the 6-seed as part of MLB's expanded playoff format. This was the Phillies first postseason trip since 2011. The Cardinals,however,were upset in a 2-game sweep,resulting in the third straight first round playoff exit in three years for St. Louis. [16]
On February 13,2023,the Cardinals signed Mozeliak to a contract extension through the 2025 season. The Cardinals experienced their only losing seasons during Mozeliak's tenure in 2023 and 2025. He stepped down from his role with the expiration of his contract,and was replaced by Chaim Bloom. [57]
