The Cardinals鈥 initiative to improve, modernize and expand their player development program at all levels of the organization continued its offseason reveal Tuesday with several new prominent hires and a new role for an all-time great, with an eye toward what each of these moves say for staffing still to be added in the weeks and months ahead.
鈥淭his will be a very busy offseason as we begin this restructuring,鈥 president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said Tuesday.
The Cardinals finalized two additions, hitting coach Brant Brown and former World Series champion Jon Jay, for Oliver Marmol鈥檚 major league staff and announced that Willie McGee will shift out of the dugout and into a special assistant role that will involve minor league instruction.
The Cardinals also announced the hiring of assistant general manager Rob Cerfolio, whom they plucked out of Cleveland鈥檚 front office to assist Chaim Bloom oversee the Cardinals鈥 overhaul of their player development. Cerfolio鈥檚 responsibilities will be to lead player development and performance 鈥 two elements of the Cardinals鈥 baseball operations that had previously been separated.
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Among Cerfolio鈥檚 first responsibilities will be to hire a new farm director and a new director of performance, bringing each previously existing area closer to together.
鈥淚t never got to the point where we got to the point it was running at 100% in terms of collaboration,鈥 Mozeliak said. 鈥淐reating a structure that will mandate that will be helpful.鈥
He referred to it as 鈥渕aximizing鈥 both facets of baseball operations.
Throughout a video conference call held Tuesday to detail new hires, new roles and recent promotions, Mozeliak touched on a recurring theme. He used the word 鈥渃hange鈥 multiple times. Recognizing they needed to invest in and advance the infrastructure for player development, the Cardinals plan to increase staffing 鈥 and also facilitate more communication and connection between departments. Brown, who last worked for Seattle, spent several years in the Dodgers鈥 and Mariners鈥 player development systems before becoming a hitting coach for the Dodgers in 2020.
Jay is a product of the Cardinals鈥 player development recent heyday and has developed a strong reputation within the game for his work and mentorship with younger players. McGee, who joined the major league staff in 2018, said in the closing weeks of the season how much he enjoyed the instruction part of his job, and his new role can allow for that while giving him greater schedule flexibility.
After spending the past two years on Skip Schumaker鈥檚 staff in Miami, Jay became available when the Marlins had widespread dismissals. Jay and Brown were both on Schumaker鈥檚 first staff in Miami. Jay鈥檚 availability interested the Cardinals, who will have him work with outfielders but also allow his role as coach to expand to other 鈥渓anes鈥 as he reunites with close friend bench coach Daniel Descalso. His was a hire of opportunity, while Brown鈥檚 hiring was one, according to Mozeliak, of need.
鈥淲e had to,鈥 he said.
A season of offensive difficulties and individual sags in performance led to the Cardinals allowing hitting coach Turner Ward鈥檚 contract to expire. They wanted a shift in direction at hitting coach. In Brown, a former Cub and Class AAA Memphis Redbird, the Cardinals see a blend of their previous two hitting coaches 鈥 the experience as a hitter in the big leagues like Ward and the comfort with broader, analytically driven approaches like Jeff Albert.
鈥淚 definitely think he brings a lot of energy,鈥 Mozeliak said. 鈥淭hat showed up in his interviews. I feel like the way he thinks about hitting and how he approaches it is going to be a change from where we鈥檝e been, and I think keeping with the change model, I think that鈥檚 healthy for us. How he goes about it from a strategic standpoint I think will help us. I think also he鈥檒l be a new voice for our hitters, and I think that鈥檚 important.鈥
Brown, 53, was hired this past season to be Mariners鈥 bench coach and offensive coordinator, a new role that had him work on mental approach as well as aid hitting coaches on preparation in-game and adjustments. As the Mariners offense faltered 鈥 eventually finishing the year slightly above average 鈥 Brown was dismissed from this new role in late May.
鈥淐learly a short runway for him there,鈥 Mozeliak said when asked about hiring so soon after another team鈥檚 dismissal. 鈥淚 do think when you look at the success he had with the Marlins, the success he had with the Dodgers, perhaps getting back to a more defined and simplified role as hitting coach might work best. When he had that different title and responsibilities, that took away maybe from what he was best at.鈥
Joining Bloom at the point of the player development push will be Cerfolio, 32.
A Yale alumnus who captained John Stuper鈥檚 teams there as a junior and senior, Cerfolio spent the past decade with Cleveland, moving up from intern to, most recently, director of player development. He had been in player development since 2018 and was promoted to its lead in 2022. During that time, the Guardians, who lost to the Yankees for the American League pennant this past week, earned a reputation for identifying and maximizing young talent, especially pitchers.
In the coming week, Cerfolio, Bloom and Mozeliak plan to put together a short list of candidates for the two openings that will double Bloom鈥檚 first group of hires a year before he takes over as president of baseball operations.
The Cardinals had previously merged the roles of assistant general manager and farm director, and in the past year, they had spread the responsibilities of performance director to other positions. Cerfolio will see a retooling of that structure with additions.
The idea is to create great cooperation between player development 鈥 the on-field performance of prospects 鈥 and performance, which is the support structure to enhance athletes and provide everything from better technology to better use of the tech, to nutrition and health plans, to mental approach.
鈥淲hat was attractive about Rob to us?鈥 Mozeliak said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 his ability to connect with the different levels of responsibility he鈥檚 going to have. It takes a unique skill set to understand the different elements of what it鈥檚 like to build a playing curriculum but also a performance curriculum. He understands both of these disciplines and his ability to communicate and lead is very important. They were almost siloed in their departments ... (and) not optimizing what both parties bring to the table.鈥
Once the Cardinals have a farm director in place, they plan to also make changes and additions to the minor league staff. That could include filling coordinator roles that have been vacant for several years.
Other than Ward鈥檚 departure and McGee鈥檚 move, no other changes to Marmol鈥檚 staff are planned, but at least one addition is. Mozeliak said the team is looking at hiring an 鈥渆mbedded analyst鈥 to work directly with uniformed staff and be a direct link with baseball development. That is another addition that falls under the umbrella of connecting departments in new and more direct ways.
Within the front office, the Cardinals promoted Matt Bayer to senior director of baseball development and Kevin Seats to senior director of analytics. DC MacLea has been moved to manager of video technology, and Brady Hall will run the minor league aspect of that as video and tech coordinator for player development. Those moves shift video into baseball development for what Mozeliak said the team hopes is greater cohesion and cooperation.
All of this is part, even the big league additions, of the Cardinals鈥 intent to regain lost ground in player development.
And that speaks to the direction the Cardinals are signaling for in 2025.
鈥淯ltimately,鈥 Mozeliak said, 鈥渢he direction we鈥檙e going is creating a lot of opportunity for our younger players.鈥
Extra bases
Starting pitcher and Cardinals strikeout leader Sonny Gray, who ended the season on the injured list with inflammation in his right forearm, is cleared for his standard offseason throwing progression and is scheduled to begin that in November, without limitations, Mozeliak said.
Gray is approaching the second year of the three-year, $75 million deal signed with the Cardinals a year ago, and the former All-Star is set to see an increase in salary to $30 million for 2025.
- Lance Lynn, the veteran right-hander who finished the year with a knee injury, has recovered well with rests and expects to have a normal offseason of preparation. Lynn, now 37, intends to pitch in 2025. Where is the next question.
The Cardinals have a $12 million option they can exercise for 2025 with Lynn, or they鈥檒l pay a $1 million buyout, and he鈥檒l become a free agent.
- Lefty reliever JoJo Romero鈥檚 recovery from a flexor tendon injury has continued into the offseason with physical therapy three times a week, Mozeliak said. His offseason schedule will adjust based on his progress.