Big Changes Could Be Coming To Cardinals Coaching Staff Amid Franchise Reset

The St. Louis Cardinals are fighting to defy naysayers by making the postseason this Oct. but depending on their results, changes to the coaching staff could be on the way.

Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak declared an organizational reset last fall after the 11-time World Series champions missed the playoffs for a second consecutive season.

Mozeliak will be replaced in 2026 by former Boston Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom, ushering in a new era for St. Louis. That said, Cardinals manager Oli Marmol's job could be in jeopardy.

"The Cardinals are in an odd place, using the 2025 season to transition from John Mozeliak to Chaim Bloom as their head of baseball operations," The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal wrote Monday morning after listing Marmol as a manager whose job could be at stake after this season ends. "Marmol, hired by Mozeliak, is under contract through ‘26. It stands to reason Bloom will want his own man. But whom? The Cardinals, though, might not want to choose between two of their legends (Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina). And Bloom, after his experience with Alex Cora in Boston, will be especially careful with his choice. Friends of Bloom, who spoke on condition of anonymity in exchange for their candor, believe Cora was not as supportive of Bloom as he could have been."

Marmol replaced 2019 National League Manager of the Year recipient Mike Schildt as Cardinals manager in 2022 -- logging an impressive 93-69 record and winning the NL Central over the Milwaukee Brewers by seven games in his first season at the helm.

"Skip Schumaker, another former Cardinal who was a member of Marmol’s initial staff in 2022 before leaving to manage the Miami Marlins, might be a safer pick," Rosenthal continued. "Now working as a senior adviser to Texas Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young, Schumaker would be the logical successor to Rangers manager Bruce Bochy. But if Bochy, who turns 70 on Wednesday, wants to manage beyond this season, Schumaker might prefer to accept an immediate opening rather than stay off the field another year. Schumaker is close with Marmol as well as Cardinals coaches Daniel Descalso and Jon Jay, both of whom were former teammates in St. Louis. It is not out of the question that if the Cardinals named Schumaker manager, Marmol could remain on his staff, with Descalso and Jay also staying put. Descalso and Jay were Cardinals teammates with Molina and Pujols as well."

The Cardinals have Marmol signed through 2026 but given how mediocre the team has been since Schildt was replaced as its skipper -- with the exception of 2022, during which the club had a more experienced veteran roster -- Bloom might want to start his tenure as St. Louis' POBO fresh by hiring a new manager.

Schumaker, who will help coach Team USA for the 2026 World Baseball Classic, would be an excellent replacement for Marmol. The 2011 World Series champion and 2023 NL Manager of the Year is a Cardinals fan favorite who has proven himself an effective leader.

However, if Marmol leads St. Louis back to the postseason this fall, there's a solid chance Bloom would hesitate to replace the 38-year-old skipper. Only time will tell what next year's Cardinals coaching staff will look like.