St Louis Cardinals 2025

DReq said:

The upside is that tickets will be cheap and readily available again this year.

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while i appreciate that. right now, until this team rebuilds enough to spend money
and be competitive, i'm resisting going to STL. i' ll see them on the road 3-4 times a
year, but this ownership has to live with what they've done. right now they are the
pour mans Rays. (meaning they aren't even the Rays yet, that's a superior minor league
system continually feeding a MLB team who competes)

the juiceman cometh said:

When I was a kid, back in like '93-'95, they used to give away tickets all over the place. I got to go to a bunch of games for free because I got tickets through my library's summer reading program. Guess we're going back to those days. At least those teams had guys like Ray Lankford, Brian Jordan, and (old) Ozzie Smith!

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oh, and the 90's-2000's birds had a stream of hall of famers in STL. who is that guy now?

the biggest problem/potential for this team is that the coaches can somehow get Gorman,
Walker and Noot playing like big leaguers. Those three need to play every day, hit .270-280
drive in runs and hit 20 hr's. then with Winn, Burleson and Donovan, we have something.
(and maybe a mgr who knows what to do with them)

The AMA is over, but I always enjoy when a media member gives access in this format.

Fajardo is the key...

illiniwil said:

the biggest problem/potential for this team is that the coaches can somehow get Gorman,
Walker and Noot playing like big leaguers. Those three need to play every day, hit .270-280
drive in runs and hit 20 hr's. then with Winn, Burleson and Donovan, we have something.
(and maybe a mgr who knows what to do with them)

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I think we all know who Nootbar is. Walker is an enigma. The outfield production has been substandard when you add Victor Scott to the mix.. That has to improve drastically for this team to compete for championships in the future. As for Gorman stick him at 3rd and play him everyday to see if he is a viable option. Again this scenario is dependent on moving Areanado befor the 2026 season. I will repeat myself again. This rebuild is not going to be a short term fix.

Ryllini said:

https://www.reddit.com/r/Cardinals/s/txQMf0pbk0

The AMA is over, but I always enjoy when a media member gives access in this format.

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I enjoyed Jeff Jones' insight. There is value in working for a small market media outlet. He isn't sitting in the bright lights of a national syndication and doesn't have the pressure for viewership or clicks. He can be himself.
His general support of Oli is kind of refreshing. As fans we are quick to see his flaws and complain. There have been worse managers. (Better ones too.)
Jeff seems to be fair. Saying the FO should get credit for being honest until they prove they are not is reasonable. Then also saying the organization "lost track of how to win games, and what went into it, and believed they could cut corners and still get it done." Adding to this his comment that going to a ballgame can still be a cheap date with $10 seats and bringing your own food.

wpr said:

I enjoyed Jeff Jones' insight. There is value in working for a small market media outlet. He isn't sitting in the bright lights of a national syndication and doesn't have the pressure for viewership or clicks. He can be himself.
His general support of Oli is kind of refreshing. As fans we are quick to see his flaws and complain. There have been worse managers. (Better ones too.)
Jeff seems to be fair. Saying the FO should get credit for being honest until they prove they are not is reasonable. Then also saying the organization "lost track of how to win games, and what went into it, and believed they could cut corners and still get it done." Adding to this his comment that going to a ballgame can still be a cheap date with $10 seats and bringing your own food.

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He made a comment about him coming to realization that he Cardinals are closer to the Reds than the Yankees. That terrified me at first, but he is absolutely right and that is ok. Like you mentioned, this franchise cut some corners and forgot how to win and here we are. You tell me the difference between our franchise we love now and the one that has been operating in Cincy the past 30 years.

Ryllini said:

He made a comment about him coming to realization that he Cardinals are closer to the Reds than the Yankees. That terrified me at first, but he is absolutely right and that is ok. Like you mentioned, this franchise cut some corners and forgot how to win and here we are. You tell me the difference between our franchise we love now and the one that has been operating in Cincy the past 30 years.

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I am a Cub fan but live with a wife & kids that are Cardinal fans. I've thought for years this exact point. St Louis is much more small market than big market. It is to the eminent credit of the organization that they spent the most part of the 00's & 10's at the upper echelons of the sport.

A lot of their fans that attend games come from a 2 to 3 hour circle from St Louis. Lots of Springfield IL area folks travel down for games. You can even do a weeknight game & still be home by midnight or so most games. As the team's competiveness has slipped the last few years, the attendance has really dropped off. Some of that happens everywhere but when a big chunk of your fanbase travels pretty regularly to games it can hit even harder.

TBH even as a fan of a big market team, the sport is in massive need of a course correction in terms of spending. At present, any megastar type of player will end up on one of maybe 5 teams. Dodgers, Mets, Yankees, Angels, with the occasional Phillies or Cubs thrown in. Baseball as a nationally relevant sport is becoming less & less sustainable each year due primarily to the financial setup of the sport.

Ryllini said:

He made a comment about him coming to realization that he Cardinals are closer to the Reds than the Yankees. That terrified me at first, but he is absolutely right and that is ok. Like you mentioned, this franchise cut some corners and forgot how to win and here we are. You tell me the difference between our franchise we love now and the one that has been operating in Cincy the past 30 years.

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I felt the same way when I read it. After watching the team since the 60's I was taken aback but realized it's the truth. I will add however because the Yanks spend so much money most teams are closer to Cincy in spending these days.
Using Spotrac numbers Yankees #3 at $320 million (rounded up) of payroll vs Cincy #21 with $144 mil means 4-10 teams are closer to NYY than Cincy. Atlanta is 10th with a payroll of $235 mil. Cubs at 11 on down are closer to the Reds. StL came in at #19 @ $154.

illiniwil said:

the biggest problem/potential for this team is that the coaches can somehow get Gorman,
Walker and Noot playing like big leaguers. Those three need to play every day, hit .270-280
drive in runs and hit 20 hr's. then with Winn, Burleson and Donovan, we have something.
(and maybe a mgr who knows what to do with them)

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Gorman - 4 seasons 1400 AB 0.72 OPS no improvement during 4 years. HS draft picks are long shots. did not pan out.
Walker - 3 seasons 947 AB 0.68 OPS getting worse every year. You can give him one more season but looking like Fools Gold
Nootbar - 5 seasons 1682 AB .75 OPS not getting better. He is above replacement player. Injured.

Chaim will make decision to trade/release all 3. Draft picks don't pan out just because you want them too. Cardinal front office/farm system became below average when Luhnow left.

New thread for 2026-