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I would like to see what Liby, Thompson, Rom,etc. could do starting from day one putting everything they’ve got into 15 pitches.
I believe all three are coming to camp preparing as starters. The Cardinals have historically said it is easier to move from starting to relieving rather than the other way around. I wonder if all pitchers feel that way, though. That would have been a good question for me to ask the three at WWU…
What is said consistently by players is that if given the choice, being in MLB in any role is better than starting in Triple-A.
I know we have probably exhausted the leadership topic, but I can’t get it out of my head. Looking back at WWU, I am really disappointed that the team’s three major returning veterans all passed on the event – Mikolas, Goldy and Arenado.
The event is the same weekend every year, around MLK Day, so I don’t buy the mass schedule conflicts. They were there last year coming off 93 wins, but disappear after 91 losses. Of course, Goldy was celebrating his MVP award last time.
As I think about all the interviews I sat through less than two weeks ago, it was left to the young players like Donovan and Noot to answer all the questions about the failures of 2023. True veteran leaders would have come in and made it clear the losing is unacceptable and that it won’t happen again. Instead they send a signal they are uncomfortable being accountable to the fans and media. Where were they?
I doubt Carp will be here in 12 months to answer for 2024. I wonder who will stand up then?
They get paid their millions whether they step up and take their licks or not, so why bother with the aggro.
Brian, I concur. The whole thing has just been weirdly handled. Mozeliak keeps bringing in more “veteran leadership”. He has outright stated that Goldschmidt and Arenado couldn’t handle all the tough tasks of that role last season. Now they are conspicuously absent. And no one else is really talking about it other than maybe Flaherty and his apology to Contreras. We changed out the bench coach again. And now we are even bringing back Matt Carpenter despite the fact that every skill he has left (at least on the field) is completely redundant. All of this tells me that the Cardinals definitely did not jettison all of the players who caused issues. And they’re hoping to solve those problems internally without anyone discovering them from the outside.
What if? What if this downward spiral continues for years, even decades? With both player personnel and management alike. What if all of we 50+ year old Cardinal fans have experienced our last champagne dousing? Even worse, what if young toddler Cardinal fans of today are in the midst of a cubbie-like drought and will never in their entire life experience the utter joy of seeing their favorite team hoist the trophy at season’s end? It’s unthinkable imagining how cubbies fans faced life without ever seeing their beloved team win it all. 2011 may have been our swan song.
Brian,
That is an interesting observation. Is WWU completely optional for players or could the club demand that they attend and be available to the media?
My opinion on leadership is that not everyone is a leader and that’s not something you can force.
The real issue is the 35 year old manager who simply does not command respect. It’s not his fault that he was hired to be the manager but (again my opinion) he simply hasn’t put in the time to earn that position – and it showed.
I’m a civil engineer / planner / real estate developer. One of the municipalities in my area hired a 32 year old to be their city engineer and it simply did not work. He was smart but simply wasn’t ready for the position. It was a massive cf on many levels. Sound familiar?
Players are not contractually bound to attend WWU, but are highly encouraged to participate in the charity event. The big three snubbing it after having previously attended and while coming off the terrible 2023 season bothers me, and I bet I am not the only one.
My take is that both player and manager leadership is ideal for success. Having at least one of the two is better than neither. We probably all have different views of where they are now.
FWIW, I like what I saw and heard from Gray. On the position player side, though, depending on Carp feels like it is missing the target. I guess that combined with trading away some players is expected to be a fix. They admitted they underestimated the leadership loss from Albert and Yadi (the latter who often blew off WWU, also!).
I don’t care a whole lot what Goldy, Arenado, et al do or say at a public event with a large intention to generate public awareness/interest, and ultimately help sell tickets. It’s nice when leaders step up and take responsibility in the appropriate forums with straight talking, but is that what this is about? I care more what they do than what they say. I really feel that way with BillyMo. Can’t believe ’em. They do a lot of talk-around on so many things.
So carry the cynicism further and maybe that’s the way Goldy, Arenado, et al, feel to a degree. Maybe they felt like BillyMo let them down last off-season (and maybe this year) and they aren’t inclined to participate in the talk-around now. Maybe they feel like it’s better to say nothing than share their honest feelings.
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