Before Sunday’s rainout sent the Cardinals trickling out of Busch Stadium to enjoy the All-Star break’s reprieve, Oliver Marmol shared the only plans on his schedule.
The Cardinals’ first-year manager and his wife, Amber, would be taking their daughters, Riley and Kylie, to The Magic House.
Arts and crafts were on deck at the St. Louis children’s institution.
It was time to turn off the baseball brain for a bit. But not before one final first-half download.
That morning, I asked Marmol what he has learned about himself and his new job so far in his first season in the big chair. He thought it over for a few hours. He came to an answer.
It was yes. As in, yes, two of the three traits Marmol wants to define his time as Cardinals manager — be honest, be curious — are in place and paying dividends.
“Guys receive it well,” Marmol said from behind his desk. “They don’t have to guess where you’re at, or what you’re thinking. It allows them the freedom to go play. They know what’s up.”
You won’t find much more than a laptop, a smattering of pens and a few printouts of data in Marmol's workspace. A suggestion that he should post a motivational quote or two on the wall has become a running joke because of his stance on such things. When Marmol first addressed the team at spring training, he told players not to expect rah-rah speeches from him, because he’s never encountered a great player who needs to be motivated by someone else.
Message sent.
What Marmol did stress to his guys entering the All-Star break is the same theme he has shared with his bosses and Cardinals fans. He feels a first half that had to be survived because of injuries can and should be followed up with a second half in which surviving gives way to thriving. The manager has been drilling down on that angle for more than a week, including recent comments about how settling for a wild-card playoff spot should be no one’s goal.
He’s been hammering home his cornerstones of honesty and curiosity for even longer.
“You have a way to operate, and you are not sure how it’s going to be received in this space,” Marmol said. “When you take the job, it’s how do I operate in honesty and curiosity in this specific space, in this seat? How is that clubhouse going to receive it? How are they going to receive being told exactly what I’m thinking? How is that going to be received by the staff, the players, the front office? What I’ve learned about myself is honesty, for me, starts with being honest with myself.”
A late-April example comes to mind. When Marmol made the decision to let starting pitcher Miles Mikolas (now an All-Star) handle the eighth inning against the Diamondbacks in what became a 2-0 loss after two Arizona home runs, Marmol called himself out. He should have gone to All-Star reliever Ryan Helsley in that moment. He didn’t hold back on sharing the regret.
“I jacked it up,” Marmol repeated Sunday. “Be honest with yourself. Be honest with others. But be approachable enough for others to feel comfortable, and for others to feel honest with me. I have to carry myself in a way the clubhouse and the staff, if I’m missing something, they have to feel comfortable coming in and saying, what do you think about this? I’ve put things in place to create an environment for that.”
Marmol meets with two groups daily to go over the most recent game. One of the groups comes armed with analytics and data. Another comes carrying been-there, done-that experience. The groups present different — and sometimes shared — opinions about the in-game decisions Marmol made. Differing voices are not encouraged. They are demanded. That’s the whole point.
“Every decision,” Marmol said. “What they liked about it. What they didn’t like about it. The decisions made, and if those decisions are sustainable over time. The balance of those two are great. Analytically, it’s fine to make certain decisions, but the analytics don’t always take into account how the clubhouse feels and the response to certain moves that, on paper, look good but in person won’t elevate the culture. I have both of those in place daily so it keeps me in check.”
Marmol incorporating these conversations into his daily schedule points to where honesty and curiosity must overlap.
In his world, one is not much good without the other.
“What’s possible?” he asked. “Are we missing something? Is there a better way to do this? Is there anything we are doing because it’s always been done that way? Is that the best way to do it?”
Another example: A willingness to embrace alternative routes has been evident in the use of high-velocity reliever Jordan Hicks. He’s started games. He’s appeared in high-leverage relief spots. He’s been an opener, a reliever who tries to mow down the top of a dangerous lineup before a traditional starter enters.
Imagine for a moment if the Cardinals' front office gets Marmol’s team the pitching help it needs, and Hicks can be used not in desperation but in trying to create a disaster for a playoff opponent.
They will know he’s coming. But they won’t know when, or how. Hicks will know. He's been informed and included in the discussion since it started.
Whether it’s referencing the average distance a breaking ball breaks, a fastball’s spin rate or a fatigued hitter’s uptick in the percentage of pitches he’s swinging at outside of the strike zone, Marmol is doing a good job showing fans the big, scary word of “analytics” is just information.
Using information to make informed decisions is the goal.
With every choice made this season, Marmol has had no problem explaining how he played it, and what — if anything — he would have done differently if given the chance to do it again.
There’s the link back to honesty.
Because Marmol is such a big fan of the word, let’s be candid about the questions some of us had about him.
Marmol, 36, is the youngest active manager in the game and never had done this before at this level. He was replacing a mentor, Mike Shildt, who had gone through a messy divorce with the front office. He was advertised as a uniting leader who would be a stronger bridge between the front office and the clubhouse, and also between the various departments that exist to maximize the team’s performance.
Marmol has checked those boxes, and if there has been one pleasant surprise from this vantage point, it has been the blowtorch of bluntness he has used along the way.
I hope it’s around to stay.
If Marmol didn’t use it upon himself, it could burn others. But he does, and that makes a big difference. Perhaps that will allow him to turn up the heat on the front office before the trade deadline. This 50-44 club needs help, and it has earned it.
When citing the long list of impressive rookies who have given the Cardinals a chance to win this division title with a second-half surge, don’t forget Marmol, the manager who has helped newcomers arrive and produce.
He is proving he is built for this. The spotlight will get brighter from here, but he welcomes it. The third word he wants to be defined by is champion. He’s on a mission to restore Busch Stadium’s reputation as a postseason magic house.
