The St. Louis Cardinals Have Fired Manager Mike Shildt

After winning 17 games in a row and taking the National League by storm, the St. Louis Cardinals have fired manager Mike Shildt, according to ESPN insider Jeff Passan.

What on earth?

Mike Shildt is out as manager of the St. Louis Cardinals, sources tell ESPN.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 14, 2021

Further reports from Passan say Cardinals president John Mozeliak fired Shildt due to “philosophical difference” in the direction of the team.

“We decided internally it would be best to separate now,” Passan tweeted.

Cardinals president John Mozeliak said he fired manager Mike Shildt earlier today due to a “philosophical difference” in the direction of the team. “We decided internally it would be best to separate now,” he said, even though Shildt had one year left on his contract.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 14, 2021

But how, philosophically speaking, can a manager who led a team to 17 straight wins and a wild card berth be fired?

To be fair, most in baseball expected Yankees manager Aaron Boone to be dismissed after leading a 14-game win streak of his own, however that situation felt much different than what’s going on in St. Louis. The Yankees had a much higher payroll and won one more regular season game than the Cardinals, yet somehow Boone is expected to return.

Maybe this is a good thing for baseball? The Cardinals came into the 2021 season expecting to compete for a World Series title. So is it possible that piling up regular season wins just doesn’t matter to the Cardinals’ front office the way it does for New York? That would be refreshing to hear, actually.

So where will the Cardinals turn to better fit their postseason win-now mentality? Could it be former Cardinal Carlos Beltran? A few talking heads on Twitter seem to believe that’s possible. The waiting game begins…