The St. Louis Cardinals shocked everyone by firing (ostensibly successful) manager Mike Shildt, and now they’re the first club with an opening to hire a new manager.
Per multiple reports, the Cardinals are set to hire
The Cardinals are set to announce Oliver Marmol as their new manager Monday morning, sources tell me and @Ken_Rosenthal.
— Katie Woo (@katiejwoo) October 25, 2021
The St. Louis Cardinals plan to hire Oli Marmol as their new manager, sources tell ESPN. Marmol, 35, served as their bench coach last season and is extremely well-regarded within the org. He was the favorite from the start. Press conference at 10a Monday. @katiejwoo was on it.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 25, 2021
So, once again, the Cardinals stay internal for a managerial hire, and I will stand ready to boo him and make jokes as his stewardship provides. It is my duty. Hopefully get a lot of chances to dust off the ole “Marmololololol” for the first time in a while.
Marmol, who is still quite young, was a player in the Cardinals system from 2007 to 2010. He was coach in the Cardinals’ system starting in 2011, and made the big league coaching staff in 2017. For 2021, he was the team’s bench coach, and clearly was well-liked. In fact, the rapidity with which this process played out makes you wonder if the front office fired Shildt knowing in advance they would promote Marmol to the gig. I suspect that’s probably the case, give how bizarre the Shildt firing and explanation was. If the front office already knew they wanted to make a change, specifically, to Marmol, it all makes a lot more sense.
More on the new Cardinals manager soon.