MLB Insider: The best-case scenario replacements if Cardinals fire Oli Marmol and John Mozeliak

If the St. Louis Cardinals continue to slide, the organization needs to take a serious look at its leadership. And that starts with president of baseball operations John Mozeliak and manager Oli Marmol. 

The Cardinals are 9-13. They are in last place in the National League Central and rank 27th in runs scored (76) and 10th in team ERA (3.85).

This offseason, the Cardinals aggressively targeted starting pitching reinforcements. Their high-priced addition of Sonny Gray has looked like a coup, with the right-hander posting a 1.04 ERA this season. But the decision to jump the market for aging starters Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson puzzled executives, especially when players like Jordan Montgomery and Blake Snell lingered on the market deep into March.

Besides that, the Cardinals mostly remained inactive this winter. They signed Keynan Middleton to a multi-year contract. They traded Tyler O’Neill to the Red Sox and did not make a meaningful offensive addition, with the team banking on Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt to lead the charge while banking on other young players taking the next step.

In the offseason, it felt like a miscalculation. Now, the first three weeks of the regular season have seemingly confirmed those beliefs.

So if the Cardinals do part ways with Mozeliak and Marmol after the season, who could they target?

Cardinals replacement options for John Mozeliak and Oli Marmol

Chaim Bloom is the obvious candidate to replace Mozeliak. He was hired as an advisor this offseason and has previous experience running the Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox front offices. He would be a slam dunk hire and is someone that rival evaluators believe would get the Cardinals back into contention.

The managerial choice, meanwhile, is less clear. Current Red Sox manager Alex Cora is an option considering that he’s a free agent at the end of the season and has ties to Bloom. 

Another option could be Skip Schumaker, the current Miami Marlins manager who previously played eight seasons for the Cardinals. After adjusting his contract, he’s a free agent at the end of the season, and the reigning National League Manager of the Year would make total sense.

Ultimately, it’s unclear if the Cardinals will look to make sweeping leadership changes. But if they do, the job should be highly coveted, and they’d be in position to land some of, if not the top options available.