Cardinals fans are right to be concerned about Yadier Molina's notable absence

The St. Louis Cardinals are off to a bit of a slow start this season, owning a record of 13-15 after 28 games.

Over the winter, the Cardinals added some key voices to their front office, including former Boston Red Sox Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom and 10-time All-Star catcher Yadier Molina. However, Molina has been notably absent since the start of the season.

Molina was named a special assistant to John Mozeliak, and Mozeliak initially had big plans for Molina, even referring to him as his "right-hand man."

But Molina is nowhere to be found, and as it turns out, his role within the organization may not be as prominent as Mozeliak made it seem. Evidence for this line of thought can be traced back to 2020, when team legends Chris Carpenter and Jim Edmonds were laid off during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Cardinals fans have every reason to be concerned about Molina

Given recent history, it's fair for Cardinals fans to be concerned about this. Edmonds and Carpenter were advisors in the front office, with Carpenter serving as a pitching instructor while Edmonds worked with hitters.

But Molina never even showed up to spring training and has not been seen at all during the regular season, which raises questions about the significance of his role.

Mozeliak had told reporters that he believed Molina would be more comfortable serving as a coach, which was part of his contract with the club. But it's important to remember that the pandemic is over, and despite the departures of Edmonds and Carpenter, Molina's role with the club shouldn't be diminished, whether he serves as a coach or in more of an advisory role.

With Molina's wealth of knowledge, it would only make sense for his role to be more prominent. But his role appears to be diminished, which should be concerning to Cardinals fans. One look at this St. Louis team on the field is proof that they are lacking Molina's imprint. The whole point of keeping Yadi around was to set an example.

Given their slow start, they could use a little bit of fire, and Molina could be the perfect man for the job of motivating the players. Marmol sure isn't cutting it.