My two cents – from an outsider without any true inside knowledge on Cardinal management, Fowler does look to be sort of a whiner. He strikes me as a guy who is great on a team that is going well. His baseball personality tends to ebb and flow with his team and surroundings, rather than being steady and strong despite circumstances.
As for Pham, he seems to be a complex character. On the one hand, he is a professional who works hard and really drives himself. I am sure this slump has driven him nuts, and he is probably pressing and trying to force things rather than relax and go with his ability.
But then you have the resentment at not getting an extension after last season. Perhaps that is eating at him some as well, but he seems like a guy that would be all the more driven by that. Still I think his talent will show through and at the end of the season his numbers will be there. Where the club goes with him at that point is anyone’s guess though.
My sense is we will part ways, and Bader will be the center fielder for the next few seasons. We’ll see though. You have to be careful about trading guys because of non-production reasons. Anytime emotional factors become a big part of a trade, your risk of making a bad move increases. The Cardinals know that well, as they have made a couple of legendary horrible deals that were emotion driven (Carlton and Hernandez). If they trade Pham at some point primarily because he expresses his feelings in a bad way, then the chances increase in making a bad deal.