The St. Louis Cardinals, long considered one of Major League Baseball’s model franchises, are now dealing with the fallout of key missteps—chief among them, the decision not to sign a three-time Cy Young Award winner. As the organization endures a stretch of nearly ten years of decline, their choice to let this future Hall of Famer slip away is being heavily questioned.
Once viewed as the National League’s model franchise, the Cardinals have experienced a concerning decline in recent years. From 2011 to 2014, they were a postseason powerhouse, reaching the NL Championship Series four straight times. However, that era of dominance has given way to inconsistency and disappointment.
In the past three seasons, St. Louis has suffered two losing campaigns and has missed the playoffs entirely for three consecutive years. Their last major postseason success came in 2015 when they reached 100 wins, only to be eliminated in the NL Division Series by the Chicago Cubs. Since that loss, the Cardinals have won just one playoff series, fueling doubts about the front office’s ability to construct a true championship contender.
A defining turning point that still casts a shadow over the Cardinals organization came before the 2015 season. At that moment, St. Louis had a golden opportunity to sign a pitcher who would emerge as one of the most dominant arms of his generation—a future Hall of Famer and three-time Cy Young Award winner. Instead, the team chose not to act, a decision that many now consider one of the franchise’s most costly mistakes in their quest to maintain long-term success.
This missed opportunity is emblematic of a larger pattern in recent years, revealing how hesitation or misjudgment in key moments has hindered the team’s ability to evolve. It also underscores the growing challenge the front office faces in rebuilding a contender capable of competing at the highest level.
As the organization continues searching for solutions and a path back to relevance, one pressing question lingers: How much longer can the Cardinals afford to let elite talent pass them by?
With the pressure of past failures mounting and the urgency for transformation becoming impossible to ignore, the Cardinals must now reckon with the impact of their decisions—and make the bold moves necessary to reestablish themselves among MLB’s elite.