Cardinals' Bill DeWitt Jr. Faces Scrutiny Over Past Remarks Regarding Leadership

St. Louis has seen better days of baseball

Jul 15, 2018; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals interim manager Mike Shildt (83) and president of baseball operations John Mozeliak and chairman Bill DeWitt Jr and general manager Mike Girsch pose for a photo after introduce Shildt as the interim manager during a press conference at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports / Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

The St. Louis Cardinals is one of baseball's most iconic franchises but recent seasons of failure have stained the organization's image.

The Cardinals endured their worst season in 33 years after finishing with a 71-91 record in 2023 and it's starting to look like not much has changed since, with the club slowly falling out of playoff contention.

Two seasons in a row of disappointment and mediocrity doesn't meet the expectations of such a decorated franchise. Fans have taken note of the regression in their beloved team and resurfaced a press conference of Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. to hopefully spark a change.

"Unfortunately, I think our club has not played up to its capabilities and it was time for a fresh voice and some new leadership," DeWitt stated after firing former St. Louis manager Mike Matheny in 2018. "You know, some places winning is just a winning record or even .500 is acceptable," DeWitt continued. "Players have a nice season, go home and get back to their families and so forth but not in this city. Not with this franchise. Not with this history and not with our great fans."

After Wednesday night's gut-wrenching 9-2 defeat to the National League Central rival Cincinnati Reds, the Cardinals have fallen to a 60-61 record and sit 8 1/2 games behind the first-place Milwaukee Brewers in the division and 4 1/2 games from an NL Wild Card spot.

There's still enough time left for the Cardinals to turn things around but with their daunting remaining schedule, it's safe to say St. Louis has its back against the wall.

It's tough to tell what the future will look like with Cardinals manager Oli Marmol signed through 2026 and St. Louis president of baseball operations John Mozeliak having one year left on his contract.

If DeWitt follows the standards he laid out for firing Matheny, then some changes, especially to the front office, could be made this offseason.

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