If St. Louis' season really is 'over,' these 3 Cardinals should be fired now not later

The 2023 season put the St. Louis Cardinals in unfamiliar territory. The team finishing 71-91 marked its first full season finishing under .500 since 1990. In an effort to ensure that they avoid back-to-back losing seasons, St. Louis signed three starting pitchers in free agency including Sonny Gray, and added to their bullpen as well in the form of Andrew Kittredge.

While the external additions have been great, the Cardinals overall have been anything but. The Cardinals sit at 15-21 overall, which is the third-worst record in the National League. They've lost seven of their last nine games including a home series against the lowly Chicago White Sox.

Yes, there's still plenty of time, but nothing that this Cardinals team has done in the last two seasons suggests that they have a miracle run in them. They have just a 17.6 percet chance to make the playoffs according to FanGraphs, and even that feels high. If this season is truly 'over', the Cardinals should make changes sooner than later starting with these three individuals.

3) The Cardinals need to fire Turner Ward with how bad their offense has been

Expecting this Cardinals team to make the postseason wouldn't have made much sense on paper because their rotation looked old and subpar. Outside of Sonny Gray, the remaining arms at this stage of their careers did not look good at all. The one positive of this Cardinals team was supposed to be their offense. That was supposed to carry them.

We're only a bit over one month into the season, but that has not been the case at all. In fact, their rotation has been better than expected with the exception of Steven Matz and Miles Mikolas. Their bullpen, particularly late in games, has been lights out as well. The issue has been their offense.

The Cardinals rank 28th in runs scored and 29th in home runs so far this season. Yes, an offense featuring Nolan Arenado, Paul Goldschmidt, and Nolan Gorman has been one of the worst offenses all year. The hitting coach has to take accountability for that.

The only player really hitting on this team is Willson Contreras and now he's out with a broken wrist. Their young prospects, Jordan Walker and Victor Scott II, struggled so mightily to the point where they were sent back down to the minors. Goldschmidt and Arenado look like shells of themselves. It's not all on the hitting coach, but he clearly doesn't make anyone better. It's time for a change.

2) John Mozeliak needs to be fired if this season is over

John Mozeliak has been the primary decision-maker in the Cardinals front office since 2008. Since taking over he's had a ton of success, including a World Series win in 2011, two NL Pennants, ten postseason appearances, and only one losing season. While he deserves praise for keeping the Cardinals in contention for as long as he did, the team is a mess now. As the one who built it, he has to go.

Mozeliak isn't allowed to spend more than ownership allows, but ownership isn't why he's made some brutal trades in recent years, like ones involving Randy Arozarena, Zac Gallen, Sandy Alcantara, and Adolis Garcia. Ownership doesn't force him to refuse to trade highly-touted prospects for proven stars and then watch those same prospects flame out (Dylan Carlson).

This Cardinals team is old and one of the worst teams in the league. That's a brutal spot to be in. There's some strong young talent in the organization, but Mozeliak hasn't done enough to put this team in position to win now or in the future. He should be thanked for everything he did, but the organization is better off moving on now.

1) The Oli Marmol extension was laughable and cannot be a deterrent in the decision to fire him

Extending Oli Marmol over the offseason coming off a 71-91 season made absolutely no sense and 36 games into the campaign it makes even less sense than it did before. It's nice that they didn't want Marmol to be seen as a lame duck, but he did nothing to earn the two-year extension that he got.

Marmol made a fool of himself when he publicly called out Tyler O'Neill for making a lazy play in a game last season. Benching O'Neill wouldn't have been an issue, but there's no reason to go to the media. This caused a bit of a rift between the two of them, and O'Neill was eventually dealt in the offseason. All O'Neill has done since being traded to the Red Sox is rake. Let's not forget what happened with Willson Contreras last season, either.

This team is far from perfect on paper which is why Mozeliak has to go, but they're also better than one of the worst teams in the National League which is what they've been since the start of last season. Marmol doesn't deserve all of the blame as players who should be good have underperformed, but he also clearly isn't helping this team at all. It's time for a new voice in the dugout if indeed this season is over.