The St. Louis Cardinals currently find themselves just over a week into their offseason after being eliminated by the Philadelphia Phillies in the NL Wild Card Series.
Gone are team legends Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina, and there’s no official word on what Adam Wainwright‘s plans are for 2023.
But for now, before free agency can begin, the Cardinals have decided to keep much of their front office intact.
According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals have issued multi-year contract extensions to general manager Michael Girsch and scouting director Randy Flores.
NEWS: #stlcards finalize multi-year contract extensions with GM Michael Girsch and AGM/director of scouting Randy Flores.
Mozeliak says he wanted to keep 'leadership group intact' as offseason begins. Story first here at @stltoday: https://t.co/IiGuyVh87M
— Derrick Goold (@dgoold) October 17, 2022
Girsch, Flores Extended
In the case of Girsch, some Cardinals fans might be a little frustrated by this.
It’s been since 2019 that the Cardinals have had a deep run in the postseason.
That year, they lost the NLCS to the Washington Nationals.
It’s also been 10 years since the Cards have been to the World Series.
So naturally, some fans may feel as if change is necessary in the front office for the team to return to its former glory.
But Flores has been instrumental in scouting young talent for St. Louis, drafting and developing key players such as Nolan Gorman, Brendan Donovan, Dylan Carlson, and Tommy Edman, with young prospects such as Michael McGreevy, Cooper Hjerpe, and Jordan Walker well on the way.
Flores was also a member of the Cards’ World Series team in 2006.
Ultimately, fans may have mixed reactions over this.
While Flores has been commended for his work, the Cardinals have only gone as far as the NLCS once since Girsch took over as general manager, and some fans may feel that some changes are necessary in order to get the Cardinals back to where they were.
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