Cardinals Rumors: Jack Flaherty trade, Marmol’s hot seat, Goldy suitor?

Cardinals Rumors: How hot is Oli Marmol’s seat in London?

While the St. Louis Cardinals face the Chicago Cubs in London, Oli Marmol’s future with the franchise is very much in flux. Yes, the Cards front office has preached patience, and Marmol is in just his second year in charge of the on-field operations of the club.

Nonetheless, numerous missteps from Marmol — including but notwithstanding benching Tyler O’Neill and berating him publicly, asking Willson Contreras to switch positions and mishandling the bullpen repeatedly — have proven he’s not the manager St. Louis thought they had when they fired Mike Shildt years ago.

This Cardinals team was expected to win the NL Central. Instead, they sit in last place by a wide margin. Something will have to give this offseason, and it’s not absurd to consider Oli the scapegoat.

Prior to the London Series, Marmol tried to provide his team an out, just in case there were any nasty errors on the playing surface.

While the artificial turf is a problem, it’s something both teams reasonably have to deal with. Through half of Sunday’s game, St. Louis has two errors. Coincidence, or poor management skills?

When his superstar Nolan Arenado was asked how the team could improve, he pointed to specific adjustments. Frankly, it’s a refreshing answer from a superstar, but shouldn’t Marmol and the Cardinals front office already be on top of this?

Something isn’t working in St. Louis, and a London Series win — should it occur — won’t change that.