Cardinals can’t let perfect Oli Marmol replacement slip away to laughable party

If you'd have told just about any St. Louis Cardinals fan after the dismal 2023 season that manager Oli Marmol would've rebounded -- including from a terrible start to the 2024 campaign -- to have the Redbirds in the thick of the NL playoff race entering the All-Star break, they'd have been ecstatic. And they largely were as the Cards were in a wild card spot at that point.

Coming out of the break, though, there's no other way to say it than that the wheels have started to come off. The Cardinals are just 10-15 since All-Star Weekend and have fallen to four games out of the final National League wild card spot. Moreover, the vibes show no signs of improving after being swept by the Reds in Cincinnati and now staring down a run where St. Louis plays the Dodgers, Brewers, Twins, Padres, Yankees and Brewers again.

Put simply, if the wheels aren't already off, they look like they almost surely will be. And despite a shocking offseason extension, the pressure remains on Marmol as many fans want John Mozeliak to put the manager on the hot seat and dismiss him if the bottom falls out for this team to finish well under .500 again.

One name who has been thrown out as a possible replacement for Marmol is former player Skip Schumaker. He spent eight seasons playing in St. Louis and is currently at the helm of the Miami Marlins, though many expect that to be short-lived for one reason or another as he becomes a free agent at the end of his current contract when the season ends. The fit with the Cards would be obvious.

However, they might have some surprising competition according to a new rumor that's surfaced -- and it's a club that would be embarrassing for the Cardinals to lose a managerial sweepstakes to.

Cardinals can't possibly let Skip Schumaker spurn them for White Sox

MLB insider Jon Heyman reported this week for the NY Post that the Chicago White Sox don't plan to remove the interim tag from player and fan-favorite Grady Sizemore after this season as he replaced fired manager Pedro Grifol. More importantly, Heyman named Schumaker as a possible candidate to fill the White Sox' desire for an outside hire.

Even with the Cardinals' recent struggles that could worsen to end the 2024 season, they are still a far more attractive option by any logical estimation given that the White Sox conducted a fire sale at the trade deadline, could still potentially move Garrett Crochet and/or Luis Robert Jr. this offseason, and are simply tearing down the roster for a massive rebuild. The Cards may be aging and have their own issues but not like the White Sox.

At the same time, there are two factors to consider. First, if the White Sox present a plan that intrigues Schumaker along with an impressive financial offer, that could be something that lands him in Chicago rather than St. Louis. More pressingly, though, there's still no guarantee that Marmol is fired at the end of this season. After all, there have been indications that he and Mozeliak remain aligned, which could ensure some job security there.

But losing a potentially ideal replacement familiar with the Cardinals organization who seems to present an upgrade over Marmol only for him to be wasted with a White Sox rebuild for at least several years would be a tough pill for fans in St. Louis to swallow. So if the Cards are serious about changing things, this should increase the urgency to make a move and pursue a replacement who will become available this offseason.