The St. Louis Cardinals have officially confirmed a mutual agreement to finalize the signing of a new coach.
Regarding Albert Pujols’ possible homecoming with the St. Louis Cardinals, this time as manager, the pieces are starting to come together.
In the near future, the St. Louis Cardinals’ best hitter in a generation could be ready to take over as manager. Albert Pujols, who guided the Leones del Escogido squad to a Dominican Winter League championship in January, was just named the Dominican Republic’s manager for the 2026 World Baseball Classic. For Pujols, who appears to be baseball’s next hot commodity on the managing market, it’s another step forward.
Teams are undoubtedly salivating at the prospect of the future Hall of Famer leading their lineup after Pujols recently stated that he would love to be a manager in the major leagues as soon as this year if the chance comes. Due to their natural talent, which makes the game more instinctive and requires less analysis, the majority of players who achieve great success on the diamond never go on to become managers. However, Pujols has the opportunity to defy this trend, as his ability to instruct players and connect with them has earned him rave reviews from former teammates.
Albert Pujols is too obvious to be the Cardinals’ next manager.
It’s not only that Pujols spent his prime years in St. Louis that puts the Cardinals in a unique position to benefit from his talents. Current manager Oli Marmol may not have much time left as the team’s captain because the Cardinals are going through a transitional phase and Chaim Bloom is ready to take over the organization’s management in 2026 following John Mozeliak’s retirement. Bloom would probably want to add new players to the team, and even if he doesn’t have a direct relationship with Pujols, there is another reason why the Cardinals could want to approach the renowned first baseman.
The ownership of the Cardinals is trying to get fans to the ballpark with freebies throughout the season since they anticipate a drop in ticket sales in 2025 and maybe into 2026. However, appointing No. 5 to lead the youthful squad would be more beneficial than any promotional event. The Cardinals have been under fire in recent seasons for appealing to nostalgia, but this would be a huge step that would have a much bigger impact than anything the team has ever done to attempt to attract supporters.
Yadier Molina, another former Cardinals player, has also stated that he hopes to manage at some time, and the Cardinals may give him a chance to do so. But the Cardinals are probably still bitter over Molina’s absence from Spring Training in 2024. After every game, managers are required to address questions from the media, and Molina has not always been amicable with them. Although he was also a little uncomfortable with the media when he was playing, Pujols claimed he had no problems with it while he was managing in the Dominican Republic.
The Los Angeles Angels have a 10-year personal services contract with Pujols, but it has an addendum that gives him the option to end it at any time. If no other team signs Pujols before then, there don’t seem to be many barriers standing in his way of a 2026 contract with the Cardinals.
With little fault of his own, Marmol’s days may be coming to an end because Pujols’ declaration that he is prepared to assume a major league managerial position in 2025 or 2026 aligns perfectly with the Cardinals’ rebranding and may inspire long-sustained supporters to reinvest in the team.
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