Tag Archives: John Mozeliak

From The Cardinals: Statements from DeWitt, Mozeliak Regarding Investigation

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The Cardinals issued the following news release.

The St. Louis Cardinals Chairman and CEO William O. DeWitt Jr. and Cardinals Sr. Vice President and General Manager John Mozeliak this morning shared their thoughts regarding Tuesday’s news of a federal investigation of the club related to a possible security breach of the Houston Astros’ database.

Saint_Louis_Cardinals_logo“These are serious allegations that don’t reflect who we are as an organization,” DeWitt said. “We are committed to getting to the bottom of this matter as soon as possible, and if anyone within our organization is determined to be involved in anything inappropriate, they will be held accountable.”

DeWitt said that several months ago, after the team was made aware of the allegations, he and Cardinals General Manager John Mozeliak engaged Jim Martin and the law firm of Dowd Bennett to assist the team in providing requested information to the federal government and to conduct an internal inquiry to attempt to identify any employee that may have engaged in the alleged conduct.

“The alleged conduct has no place in our game,” Mozeliak said.  “We hold ourselves to the highest standards in every facet of our organization.  It has been that way forever and is certainly true today.  We are committed to finding out what happened.  To the extent we can substantiate that these allegations have merit, we will take appropriate action against anyone involved.”

“The internal inquiry is not yet complete,” said Martin. “In the meantime, we wish to respect the process and avoid saying anything which would interfere with the government’s investigation.”

Thank You, John Mozeliak

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In February Billy Beane, general manager of the Oakland A’s, was the keynote speaker for the convention I work on at my full-time job. It was fascinating to hear his talk, which was about 50 minutes long. One thing he elaborated on was why he does not watch the A’s games, which was a famous part of the movie “Moneyball.” He said he prefers to make his decisions based more on the big picture and what it will take to help the team win overall, rather than what happens in one particular game.

MozeliakJohnI thought of Beane and his comments after Thursday’s trade deadline — both in reading about the moves he made for his own team as well as after the moves John Mozeliak made to try to improve the Cardinals.

With a few days to absorb it all now, combined with a trip to St. Louis for Friday and Saturday’s Brewers-Cards games, I am glad that Mozeliak made the moves to acquire John Lackey and Justin Masterson. In addition, I’m glad he began the team’s transition about 10 days ago in signing A.J. Pierzynski.

It’s not a secret that I haven’t been too thrilled this season, since I wrote a post called “This Year’s Cardinals Don’t Do Much For Me” two weeks ago and, in it, I said that maybe something would change my mind about this year’s team. And something has — the work of John Mozeliak.

So thank you, Mo.

Sure, it’s sad to see Allen Craig and Joe Kelly leave — it definitely gave me pause on Friday to see a table and rack outside of the Cardinals team store at Busch Stadium filled with Kelly and Craig jerseys and shirseys under “50 percent off” signs. It’s hard to believe they aren’t Cardinals now, and it was difficult to see Craig’s 2013 World Series jersey on display at the Cardinals Hall of Fame and Museum when I was there Saturday plus even harder to see Kelly’s glasses on display too. But change is always difficult — for fans and players and the manager alike — when some likable and popular guys are moved. Continue reading →

Cardinals Announce Best Theme Night Ever

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Yesterday the St. Louis Cardinals sent out a press release announcing six additional theme nights for the 2014 season. There’s only one you really need to know, because it’s the best theme they could ever possibly have: Mo Tie Monday.

MozeliakJohnYes, it’s a special night to honor always impeccably dressed general manager John Mozeliak. Mo Tie Monday is on May 12, when the Cardinals take on the Cubs at 7:10 p.m.

The details: “Each special Mo Tie Monday ticket comes with a limited-edition Cardinals bow tie. A portion of each ticket sold will benefit Cardinals Care. Fans may also purchase a VIP ticket which includes the game ticket, bowtie and a pre-game Q&A with Mozeliak, starting with a bow tie tutorial.”

How could you not purchase the VIP ticket when it includes a bow tie tutorial from Mo himself? Oh, and the chance for a Q&A too. Having had the opportunity to participate in Q&A’s with Mo at blogger days, I can tell you firsthand he’s entertaining and funny. Plus, this time you get a bow tie tutorial from him. We never had that during past blogger days.

Here’s a look at the limited-edition Cardinals bow tie.

Bowtie_Cutout

That is just the best. Seriously. I’m just sorry that women wearing bow ties is not a thing.

Here’s the information from the Cardinals on the rest of the new theme nights.

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Getting Inside John Mozeliak’s Mind

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For most Cardinals writers, a method such as inception would be preferable when interviewing General Manager John Mozeliak.   Getting inside the head of the most important mind in Busch Stadium is primal for any aspiring sports writer.   On Saturday morning, I had a chance to get the latest on the team from Mo.

John MozeliakMozeliak is polite, blunt, and forthcoming at the same time while retaining a dry wit about his presence.  He knows we have questions and just need answers.  He never dodges a questions and continued that routine this morning.

“We felt like we were able to accomplish improvement for the 2014 season.   Clearly there will be question marks heading into camp, but we should have a competitive camp.”

An update on white hot prospect Oscar Taveras was the first big topic on the agenda.  “From a physical standpoint, Oscar is in the best shape of his life and should be ready to go in the spring  He’s able to move a lot of weight right now and the doctor maintained there would be no setbacks.”

Bringing Oscar to St. Louis for a look and the Winter Warmup (signing today from 2pm-4pm) was a no brainer because of the amount of staff with the team and getting him exposure here.

When Joe Strauss asked about the arrival of Taveras comparing to the launch of Albert Pujols in 2001 as far as making the team is concerned, Mozeliak said the hype for Pujols wasn’t as crazy as it is for Oscar.

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A Cardinals Fan’s Letter to Santa

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Dear Santa,

Two days before Christmas is definitely a little late for sending you a letter, I know, but there’s a good reason for that (beyond being behind on getting ready for the holiday this year): as a Cardinals fan, there’s really nothing I need.

santa hatYes, I know that sounds terribly spoiled of me and could just add fuel to all that October commotion the sports media and fans of other teams had such a great time with in bashing Cards fans. (Some of that was justified — there really are stupid Cardinals fans out there, as there are of every single team in every sport.)

But what I really want to say, Santa, is thanks. Because you’ve already helped John Mozeliak take care of the few needs the Cardinals did have once the final game of the 2013 season ended — and all before the calendar year of 2013 concludes.

Sure, the needs were not great for a team that made it to Game Six of the World Series (which is something those really obnoxious and whiny Cardinals fans need a reminder of: this team made it to the World Series in 2013 for the second time in three seasons. The Cardinals don’t have the needs of the Cubs, obviously. Or the Brewers. Or …) Anyway, we knew what the most glaring need was too: a shortstop.

Continue reading →

Monday Morning Tidbits: McCarver, Mo and More

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UPDATE: Tony La Russa is unanimously elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame, as are Joe Torre and Bobby Cox. More from Derrick Goold and Rick Hummel is here.

It’s Monday morning, it’s cold and snowy throughout much of the country (which was pretty obvious if you watched any NFL games yesterday) but there’s plenty of baseball talk going on — so it can’t be all bad.

McCarverMaybe you saw the article on Friday in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch hinting at Tim McCarver joining the Cardinals broadcast team. Now Jenifer Langosch has more at the Cardinals site: indeed Fox Sports Midwest is nearing a deal that would add McCarver to the television team in a limited role.

Hmmm. Having never been quiet about my feelings for the Fox Midwest announcers (and rewatching some games lately from this season just makes my feelings all the more clear), I can’t say this would make things any worse than they have been. Who knows — maybe Joe Buck could even come back and do a couple of games with McCarver. Didn’t everyone besides Cards fans think they were always rooting for the team during national broadcasts anyway? But Dan McLaughlin and Tim McCarver together … yikes.

In happier thoughts, there likely isn’t a Cardinals fan out there who doesn’t appreciate what John Mozeliak continually does for the team. (Well, okay, there probably is at least one …) But if you don’t appreciate how he’s built the roster that’s appeared in two of the last three World Series and even retooled the roster for 2014 without giving up any of the Cardinals prospects plus received a compensatory draft pick now that Carlos Beltran has signed with the Yankees, read this about the Seattle Mariners and their general manager Jack Zduriencik. You will appreciate Mo — and be really glad you’re a Cardinals fan.

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Catching Up With The Cardinals: December Edition

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If you’re like me, the quietness of the Cardinals’ offseason combined with the business of the holiday season lends itself to feeling out of the loop.

No worries! Let’s catch up on the latest news together, shall we?

saint_louis_cardinals_logoThe biggest story this week is one that ended without actually ending. The Cardinals appeared to be all set to finalize the purchase of the Memphis Redbirds, as announced in mid-November. With John Mozeliak in attendance at last night’s City Council meeting, the plan was to finish up the details and obtain the council’s approval.

That plan hit a snag when the council members began arguing they hadn’t had sufficient time to review the changes to the plan or the Xs and Os of how it would/could all work.

With a Dec. 31 deadline to complete the purchase, the timeline grows tighter and tighter with each delay, this time until the council reconvenes on Monday. Continue reading →

A New Deal: Matheny Earns 3 More Years

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As usual, when the Cardinals announce a “baseball operations” press conference, the rumor mill starts churning.

Chris Carpenter’s retiring? Matt Carpenter’s extension? The finalization of the purchase of the triple A team? The first off season trade?

Wrong, wrong and wrong again. Well, sort of.

Chris Carpenter is retiring. But, that was the secondary announcement of the presser.

photoThe spotlight story was Mike Matheny, not Matt Carpenter, getting a three-year extension.

Bill DeWitt Jr. introduced the new deal by reiterating his belief that the best way to operate and maintain a franchise is to retain the “core pieces” of its success. Matheny, both he and John Mozeliak said, is an integral part of that success.

“Why now?” Mo said, anticipating the question before it was asked. The answer was simple: the organization knows now that they want Matheny for the long haul. There’s no sense in dragging out the inevitable or – more importantly – letting it be a distraction during the 2014 season. Continue reading →

Lance Lynn Lives!

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There was a chance. After giving up a single and a walk, he had a moment … a small one, but a moment, nonetheless. In his defense, most anyone would have had a moment when the throw from Tony Cruz to Daniel Descalso ended up in center field, allowing the first run of the game to score.

Lynn is certainly allowed a moment of frustration there.

More often than not, though — at least as of late — that “moment” turns into a catastrophe. The frustration steals away his focus and BAM. It’s all over.

LynnI’ll admit it — I was ready for it. I was bracing for “in play, run(s)” to flash across my iPhone screen. I was even more resigned to it when Lynn promptly walked the next Milwaukee batter to put two on with two outs in the second inning.

Whether he wants to believe it or not, he was pitching for his rotation life last night. Based on the rumblings from the top of the food chain (i.e. John Mozeliak), the organization isn’t entirely pleased with the repeated “maturity” struggles. No one has ever questioned Lynn’s stuff. But, keeping the attitude and emotions in check? That’s been in question for a while now. Continue reading →