Benjamin Hochman | Post-Dispatch
Sports columnist
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The line had a little James Earl Jones to it. It was little schmaltzy, sure, but it struck a chord, in accordance with the day’s theme.
It was in “Field of Dreams” when Jones’ character said: “This field, this game, it’s a part of our past, Ray. It reminds us of all that once was good — and it could be again.”
And on Tuesday inside Busch Stadium, Chaim Bloom orated about the legacy of the St. Louis Cardinals, how they drafted and developed ballplayers, how other teams tried to be like them, not the other way around.
“We (should be the ones who) set the standard — and that standard is always changing. It means something different in 2025 or 1965 or 2005, and it’s going to mean something different in 2035. …
“So now — we get to do it again.“
We — as in, Bloom’s new regime, with the 42-year-old as the president of baseball operations.
Get to — as in, it’s a privilege.
Do it again — as in, it’s possible to rekindle the flame.
And after the franchise’s “TIM-BER!” — that might take a whole lot of tinder.
The Cardinals have been bad for a few years now — on the field, sure, but also with messaging. Bloom brings a new, invigorated voice into our ecosystem here.
He said after his news conference Tuesday that his goal in messaging was to be “direct and honest.” But what was most important was that he reached the fans — the fans who chose not to see their favorite team play in person in 2025.
Now, it’s hard not to “win” a news conference. A person arrives with prepared words and thoughts and messages in a statement — and then repeats them in answer form. Still, credit Bloom for “winning” the news conference by hitting all the right notes. Bloom acknowledged the Cardinals time-honored history, while also pointing out that at this time in history, things aren’t great. He was candid that the St. Louis Cardinals are currently not at the standard the St. Louis Cardinals should be.
He displayed ambition in his chosen words.
And perhaps most importantly, he spoke directly to the fans.
“We are not where we want to be; we are not where we need to be,” said Bloom, who previously ran the Boston Red Sox. “We are not where our fans expect us to be, and we are not where we expect ourselves to be. Our goal is to field the team every year that can compete for this division and for a World Series championship.”
But in 2026? Probably not. Yeah, as we saw, even with a down year, the expanded playoff format allowed St. Louis to be in the mix during the final weeks. But Bloom clearly has a vision for the long-term future. He will make moves that make the Cardinals stronger in future seasons. He won’t sacrifice that for what he called “short-term gratification” of moves during next season.
The plan is to make the Cardinals great again — and have it stick.
That’s going to take a while. That’s going to take, well, “boldness to do things our way, not to fear being different, if we think different can be better,” Bloom said. “It takes humility, the humility to understand that when it comes to this great game, there’s always so much we don’t know, so much to learn, and so we can never stand still. We can be good, but we can never be good enough in this competitive business, the front of the line is always moving, and it takes trust to work together, to communicate well, to have each other backs, to hold each other accountable. That’s the standard that our fans hold us to, and that’s what they deserve. A hardworking organization. It does things the right way. It’s never satisfied.”
Bloom is bringing back manager Oli Marmol. That’s smart.
Marmol might not be universally beloved by fans, but as I’ve written numerous times, his intelligence and integrity make him the right guy for the gig.
Bloom said he’ll likely trade Nolan Arenado — in agreement with the third baseman — and that will open up third base for someone young. Will it be top prospect JJ Wetherholt? Bloom gushed about the kid in a meeting with local writers after the news conference.
Bloom was honest about Nolan Gorman’s startling drop-off — and that of Jordan Walker, too.
Bloom also shared that, regarding a trade of someone like the likable Brendan Donovan, “you have to be open to different things, even, even if they’re things that might be tough.” And Bloom said he might sign a free-agent starting pitcher, considering the Cardinals, you know, don’t have many starting pitchers.
There will be trades.
There will be roster movement.
There will be steps toward 2026 but more importantly 2027 and 2028 and beyond.
And regarding the draft-and-develop model he wants to rejuvenate, Bloom said: “If we do it well, the results will be a steady flow of championship-caliber players coming to our organization, dominating details, a core that comes together and sustains itself through the inevitable change that every roster goes through in this industry. That’s how it’s done; that’s how we work with our goal today.”
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Benjamin Hochman | Post-Dispatch
Sports columnist
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