Come tomorrow morning, the calendar will read “June,” and the Cardinals’ record will read no better than .500. Though they will remain in the midst of the NL Central race, this is a team that has major concerns in the field, in the bullpen, and at the plate. A sterling starting pitching staff has been the only thing carrying the Cardinals to this point in the season, and expecting this kind of unparalleled performance from the starting five going forward would be foolhardy and unfair. Cardinals’ fans have been discontent with the team for a while now, though an 18-6 spell in the middle of the season briefly quelled those fears. Now, many fans are back in full-blown panic mode. But Cardinal Nation has grown to expect a cooler temperament from its long-standing, stalwart General Manager, John Mozeliak, and we should certainly expect that same kind of calm demeanor going forward…
…Or should we? Over the course of the last week or so, the Cardinals’ GM has made a series of moves that may indicate that he is not so calm, not so collected, and not so content with protecting the status quo as he has been in previous years. Is it possible that we are witnessing the beginning of an evolution in the approach of John Mozeliak?
First, the Cardinals decided to demote reliever Miguel Socolovich in order to promote Memphis reliever John Brebbia. Though the demotion of a 30 year-old, journeyman reliever is hardly headline news, this one seemed significant, as Socolovich was out of minor league options, and therefore would have to clear waivers. Moreover, Socolovich had the option of rejecting the demotion and becoming a free agent, having been outrighted previously by the Chicago Cubs. So, in making this move, Mozeliak risked losing Socolovich entirely, something he had seemed hesitant to do, despite the reliever’s season-long struggles.
Next came perhaps the most shocking move of the bunch. With Jose Martinez returning from injury, someone had to be moved from the 25 man roster, and the victim was, perhaps surprisingly, Cardinals’ Left Fielder Randal Grichuk. More shockingly, Grichuk was demoted all the way to High-A Palm Beach, a move that came as a shock to Cardinals’ fans. Grichuk has looked lost this season, slashing an abysmal .222/.276/.377 in 181 plate appearances, but no one expected that Mozeliak would take such decisive action so soon.
Regarding his decision, Mozeliak didn’t mince words. He said that Grichuk was struggling at the plate, and that they were hoping to see better “strike zone management” from him in Palm Beach. Moreover, he explained his reasoning behind the move:
“You’ve always heard me say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and hoping for a different outcome. This is no different. I really felt like we need to do something different here and go outside the box.”
And outside the box Mozeliak certainly went. It remains to be seen what this demotion will do for Randal Grichuk’s psyche, much less for his career, but what is certain is that Mozeliak broke his mold and tried something new.
But the new moves did not stop there. When the Cardinals opted to move Kolten Wong to the DL, they took a chance and brought up the rising prospect infielder Paul DeJong (23). DeJong rewarded their decision immediately, with a memorable home run in his first at bat (though the home run would mean little in the team’s loss to the Rockies). Moreover, DeJong has been given consistent playing time, receiving a spot in the starting lineup in every game since his promotion (except that first game, where travel prevented him from making the stadium on time for first pitch). Now, it’s nothing new, necessarily, for the Cardinals to call up an impact player from the minor leagues; in fact, that’s been their M.O. (no pun intended) for the past several seasons. Still, the Cardinals, and more specifically, John Mozeliak, saw Kolten Wong’s injury, and looked at it not as an opportunity to create more playing time for Jhonny Peralta or Greg Garcia, but rather as a chance to get a young prospect a look at the major league level, and they have stuck to it.
Finally, the news broke a few hours ago that the Cardinals would be releasing veteran reliever Jonathan Broxton in order to call up John Gant, the 24 year-old pitcher St. Louis acquired as part of the trade that sent Jaime Garcia to Atlanta. Giving Broxton his unconditional release means that the Cardinals may be responsible for over $3 million in unpaid salary, which makes this another uncharacteristic move for Mozeliak. We will know before long to what extent Gant will be used, and what impact he will have, but the Cardinals have decisively cut ties with a struggling reliever in Broxton.
Now, any of these moves in isolation might not be worth much consideration. No single one of them, with the possible exception of Grichuk’s demotion, is all that surprising. Sometimes struggling relievers get demoted, sometimes veterans run out of juice before they run out of contract, and sometimes those veterans get cut. Baseball is, as we are often reminded, a business. But all of these moves considered together, especially when signed off on by the pen of John Mozeliak, are worth reflecting on.
Mozeliak has historically been a very cautious manager. He is not in the mold of Red Sox President Dave Dombrowski, or even in the mold of former Cardinals’ GM Walt Jocketty. For GM’s like Dombrowski, huge free agent signings and shocking trades have become par for the course. But for Mozeliak, such moves have been seen as too big a risk. Mo’ prefers the draft-and-develop approach. He would much rather bring a player up through his system than add one from outside. He would typically rather choose the player he knows, rather than take a chance on a new commodity.
At least, that is how he’s been known in the past. But one must wonder whether Mo’ is starting to change his tune. This summer, Mozeliak made two of the most notable free agent signings, adding CF Dexter Fowler and reliever Brett Cecil for a combined price of around $100 million. Though neither of those moves could be considered home runs at this point, they were both bigger risks than Mo’ is known for making. In the offseason prior, it is well known that the Cardinals were top bidders for free agent pitcher David Price and free agent outfielder (and former Cardinal) Jason Heyward. Though St. Louis came up short in both negotiations, Mozeliak didn’t seem shy then about throwing money at the big fish on the market. Once again, Mozeliak tried hard to sign Cuban phenom Luis Robert, coming in second only to the Chicago White Sox.
Another article could, and perhaps should be written on why Mozeliak came in second in all of these major negotiations, but what is more important for this discussion is that he tried. Mo’ tried to make major moves. And now, in a season that has been plagued by inconsistency, Mozeliak has made four significant roster changes in the course of about a week. It would seem that the Cardinals’ GM is no longer content to “wait and see,” and I for one wonder whether he might have bigger plans in the near future. Whether that is pursuing a major trade, clearing space for more young talent to get Major League playing time, or even aggressively retooling by moving impending free agents like Lance Lynn or Seung-hwan Oh is uncertain. But it seems like we may be seeing a whole new Mo’, and that could mean big things for the future of the St. Louis Cardinals.
