Going through a rebuild is never fun, but the transparency from a front office is welcome.
Going through an organizational rebuild is never fun, so with that in mind, the 2026 season for the St. Louis Cardinals could be a struggle.
After missing the playoffs for the third straight year in 2025, the Cardinals elected to rip the band-aid off this offseason, trading away Nolan Arenado, Brendan Donovan, Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras.
In exchange, the Cardinals have gotten younger, cheaper, more athletic and they've loaded up on pitching in hopes of turning the roster around in short order.
With six prospects ranked inside the MLB Top 100 and six draft picks in the Top 100 selections this year, there are reasons to believe the Cardinals can rectify this over the next few years.
And in a refreshing change of pace, the Cardinals are being open and transparent about their plans and goals. While some front office groups hide from the media amidst tough times and tough decisions, new Cardinals leader Chaim Bloom is letting fans know exactly what's happening.
The St. Louis Cardinals equipment manger scrubs the team batting helmets before the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park. Charles LeClaire-Imagn ImagesHe said the following to Foul Territory TV earlier this week:
I will say, just from being around the last couple years, and I think this is generally true, especially in a baseball town, you do yourself a disservice if you think you can pull the wool over the eyes of your fans. Our fans are really smart. They get this...I actually have felt, look to the extent that this is the right course for our organization, we believe strongly that it is. And actually the best and quickest way back to where we want to go is just to lean into this and just make sure we're doubling down on building up our young talent base, because that's how the Cardinals always win. I have felt that our fans understand that, and I think we'd actually be doing ourselves and them a disservice if we were to try to pretend that something else is appropriate...
Bloom spoke the same way in Boston when he was running the Red Sox, but fans quickly soured on the rebuilding plan there. As I have said throughout the offseason: Bloom can do this, provided the Cardinals fans have patience. That is, of course, easier said than done.
But the core of the Red Sox 2025 playoff was built by Bloom, who drafted Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer, as well as signed Trevor Story. He also drafted the prospects that led to the Red Sox acquiring ace pitcher Garrett Crochet.
Elsewhere in the news for the Cardinals
--The Cardinals extended manager Oliver Marmol on Sunday, giving him a two-year deal with an option for a third year. He's now under contract through 2028 with the option for 2029. Here are the reasons why St. Louis might have done it despite not making the playoffs for each of the last three years. Bloom spoke about Marmol on a recent edition of 'Foul Territory TV.'
--The new MLB Pipeline Top 30 prospects for each team are out. Here's where the recently-acquired prospects stack up for St. Louis.
--While propping up the Los Angeles Dodgers, sports radio icon Colin Cowherd called out the Cardinals in a rant on 'The Herd' on Tuesday, calling them "crummy." We examine where Cowherd missed the point in this here.
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