Mandatory Credit: Robert Hanashiro-USA TODAY Sports
The St. Louis Cardinals have fired Mike Shildt, their manager of the last three-and-a-half seasons, as reported first by Rob Rains and later by ESPN‘s Jeff Passan.
Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak confirmed the decision to let go of Shildt, saying the front office and their now-former manager had “philosophical difference in the direction that our Major League club is going.”
“This is not a reflection simply on wins and losses,” Mozeliak said (as transcribed by Mark Feinsand). “It really was more at a higher level, where we saw the team going.”
Shildt replaced Mike Matheny during the 2018 season, and the team finished 41-28 after a lethargic start under Matheny. The Cards then had winning seasons each of the last three years, totaling an overall 252-199 record under Shildt. The 2021 team started off slow but ripped off 17 straight wins over August and September to secure the second National League Wild Card spot. They lost to the Dodgers 3-1 in the Wild Card game on a game-winning home run by Chris Taylor.
Mozeliak said the team has “quality internal candidates” for the job, but he didn’t rule out going outside of the organization for the next manager.
As for Shildt, he will likely now make the short-lists of candidates for existing managerial jobs around baseball, including the Mets’. The Padres have an opening, too, and the Yankees have yet to make a decision about Aaron Boone, whose contract expires after the World Series. (The Yankees started letting go of Yankees coaches Thursday, if that’s an indication of anything.)
An odd tidbit about this news: the Cardinals requested permission to announce Shildt’s firing on the day of Game 5 of the NLDS between the Dodgers and Giants from Major League Baseball. It feels odd that MLB would police when a team releases big news, especially when it’s something like the firing of a manager, but that’s an article for another day.
