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St. Louis Cardinals: Mike Matheny’s job not in jeopardy

By Nick Ziegler

Sep 16, 2016; San Francisco, CA, USA; St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny (22) walks away from the pitchers mound after relieving starting pitcher Luke Weaver (not shown) in the third inning at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 16, 2016; San Francisco, CA, USA; St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Matheny (22) walks away from the pitchers mound after relieving starting pitcher Luke Weaver (not shown) in the third inning at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: John Hefti-USA TODAY Sports /
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The St. Louis Cardinals are in the heat of a tight race for one of the two Wild Card spots. Would their manager’s job be in danger if they miss the playoffs?

The National League Wild Card race is an entertaining one this season. The New York Mets, San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals have been battling for the last month for the final two playoff spots.

Due to the emergence of the Chicago Cubs this season, the Cardinals have found themselves fighting for a Wild Card spot quickly after the Cubs took a large lead in the division. Recently, the Cardinals have been one of the most consistent teams in baseball.

There were some rumblings about the job security of Matheny if the Cardinals were to miss the playoffs, but that has been shot down. Owner Bill DeWitt quickly showed support for Matheny.

“Mike’s done a really good job for us,” Mr. DeWitt said to Jose de Jesus Ortiz of STLToday.com. “There’s no thought that we’re going to go in any different direction.”

“Mike’s a great leader and he continues to be that,” DeWitt said. “And it just seems to be one of those years where things haven’t worked. That’s the nature of the game. You can’t fault any one aspect of it. You have your ups and downs in baseball. Things have a tendency of playing out in different directions.”

In addition to support from DeWitt, Matheny also received support from John Mozeliak.

“I do feel like all of us are always held accountable for what we do here, so there’s nobody excluded from that. But having said that, I don’t look at him as someone that we are where we are because of that.”

Furthermore, the Cardinals would be crazy to move on from Matheny at this point even if they miss the playoffs this season. In five seasons, Matheny has done a great job leading the Cardinals, which includes an NL Pennant in 2013.

Related Story: 3 reasons why the Cardinals will make the playoffs

Finally, it was very smart of the organization to come out and support Matheny. The Cardinals still can make the playoffs this season, and they don’t need the distraction of Matheny’s job security hanging over the team.

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