Cardinals All-Star Slugger Shockingly Attacks Front Office, Demands Change

St. Louis fans deserve better

Jul 21, 2024; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; St. Louis Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras (40) reacts with third baseman Nolan Arenado (28) after hitting a home run against the Atlanta Braves during the eighth inning at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals are nearing the end of their season with a mirky offseason ahead of them as they sort through what went wrong in 2024 and how to fix it.

In a season that was supposed to be a turnaround from last year's 91-loss campaign, the Cardinals didn't come close to reclaiming the National League Central throne and fell short of making the playoffs for a second straight year.

Losing is slowly becoming the Cardinal Way and a St. Louis slugger, upset with his team's shortcomings, is calling out the front office to do something about it.

"'There’s some areas that need to be addressed,' Contreras said," as transcribed by Belleville News-Democrat's Jeff Jones on Sunday. “'I don’t know if the front office is going to, but...we didn’t come together as an offense at all, during the whole year. There’s a lot of holes throughout the lineup as well, from one to nine.'"

The Cardinals lineup is ranked No. 25 in the league with 635 runs scored and has been the club's Achille's heal for most of the season. There were bouts of success from St. Louis' offense throughout the year but inconsistent performances and injuries from key players derailed any momentum the club could get going.

"'The only thing we can control is show up next year and keep working,'" Contreras continued. "'But as an organization, I think the Cardinals are one of the biggest organizations in baseball, and if I was them, if I was the front office, I’d have to be hungry to own this division. We haven’t owned this division the last two years.'”

The Milwaukee Brewers hold a 10-game lead over the third-place Cardinals in the NL Central and could finish the year having won the division by double digits over St. Louis two years in a row after burying the 11-time World Series champions by 21 games in 2023.

It's time for the Cardinals' front office to listen to its star catcher and disgruntled fan base. Changes need to happen this offseason if they want to be different in 2025.

More MLB: Ex-Cardinals Fan Favorite Reportedly 'On The Reds Radar' To Supplant Fired Manager