Night and day: Oli Marmol and John Mozeliak deserve credit for Cardinals rotation

Many have questioned the St. Louis Cardinals' leadership in recent years, headlined by manager Oli Marmol and president of baseball operations John Mozeliak. But regardless of how you feel about their decision-making process, it is hard to argue with the results they've yielded in 2024.

After being as many as seven games below .500 (17-24), the Cardinals are now 50-46 with the first half of the campaign in the rearview. There is plenty of praise to be given for the impressive turnaround, though the pitching rotation deserves a shoutout. They're even more worthy of recognition because fans and media alike doubted the moves made by Mozeliak to bolster the group, as usual.

On Monday, Katie Woo of The Athletic summed up the situation perfectly ($). She noted that acquiring right-hander Sonny Gray "always made sense for the Cardinals." Conversely, the additions of long-serving hurlers Lance Lynn and Kyle Gibson were notably less well-received. Nevertheless, it is undeniable how much of a positive impact the trio has had on the current outlook in St. Louis.

Night and day: Oli Marmol and John Mozeliak deserve credit for Cardinals rotation

"Mozeliak opted for durable veterans," as Woo points out, rather than prioritizing "costly front-line starters." While that initially upset the St. Louis faithful, the Cardinals insider suggests there was a method to the madness:

"The Cardinals hoped the extensive experience of all three pitchers [Gray, Lynn and Gibson] would allow for longer outings, something the 2023 rotation struggled with. The organization also liked the personalities of their signings, reasoning that their mental makeup would help as well."

So far, things have gone precisely as planned for Mozeliak. And in turn, the Cards also had the financial flexibility to address their bullpen by trading for and signing former All-Star Andrew Kittredge.

St. Louis' pitching staff has improved drastically this season. After ranking 27th and 24th in the majors in WHIP and ERA last year, they're now 16th in each respective category. Those aren't world-beating numbers, but the substantial progress has contributed to the Cardinals being in the thick of the National League Wild Card race.

Per Woo, the triad of Gray, Gibson and Lynn combined for 297.2 innings pitched, a 3.96 ERA and 22 quality starts across 54 first-half appearances.

Despite all the criticism Mozeliak and Marmol receive, they merit flowers for identifying an area of weakness and making a concerted effort to rectify it.