MLB Writer Believes Cardinals' Skipper Saved His Job For 2026

The St. Louis Cardinals have fallen out of postseason contention. After Tuesday night's 8-3 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates, they sit 18 games back in the National League Central and 6 1/2 games back of the New York Mets for the third Wild Card spot. Any hopes of St. Louis making it to October have essentially been squashed. 2025 is officially a lost cause for a team that showed promise earlier this summer.

However, not everything has gone wrong for St. Louis in 2025. They have shown signs of life at various points this year, and it's also worth remembering that for a while, they looked like they had a chance at the postseason. Manager Oli Marmol has gotten as much as possible out of a lackluster roster this season.

Zachary Rotman of FanSided listed three managers who have seemingly saved their jobs for 2026, and Marmol was one of them.

Cards' Skipper Has Saved His Job For 2026

"They've been somewhat competitive despite the front office showing no intention to win now. In fact, if you remove the Cardinals' 5-15 record in games Erick Fedde starts, they're sitting at 60-57 and are right in the thick of the Wild Card race," Rotman wrote.

"I get that it'd be fun for Cardinals fans to see a legend like Albert Pujols or Yadier Molina run the show, and I get that finishing with a sub-.500 record in two of the last three years is far from ideal, but from watching the games it feels as if Marmol has grown as a manager, and I'd argue that the team has over-performed. He deserves to stick around."

Marmol has gotten as much as possible out of a roster that doesn't have much talent on it, and that is certainly commendable. The Cardinals had a very quiet offseason and only added Phil Maton in free agency while letting all of their other impending free agents walk.

They were forced to sell at the trade deadline after falling out of postseason contention, and they shipped out rental relievers Ryan Helsley, Phil Maton and Steven Matz. But Marmol has still done an admirable job keeping the Cardinals competitive for most of the season.

New president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom could choose his own manager, but Marmol has earned the right to stay in St. Louis for at least one more season.