Winners in 13 of their last 15 outings, the St. Louis Cardinals are riding high — but not everyone on the roster is enjoying the surge. While offensive production has come from all corners, including standout performances by Lars Nootbaar, Masyn Winn, and Ivan Herrera, veteran third baseman Nolan Arenado is stuck in a deep slump.
Arenado got off to a blazing start to the season, but his recent stretch has been anything but. Over his past 29 games, he’s struggled to a .204/.266/.292 slash line with just six extra-base hits, and his underlying contact numbers have dipped significantly. The prolonged cold streak prompted Arenado to voluntarily step out of the cleanup role ahead of Monday’s series opener against the Detroit Tigers, sliding down to sixth in the batting order for the first time this year.
“The guys hitting behind me deserve to be moved up,” Arenado said, per The Athletic’s Katie Woo. “There’s really not much more to it than that.”
Arenado’s humility and team-first mentality are certainly admirable. It’s not every day that a \$275 million future Hall of Famer willingly acknowledges he’s being outperformed and voluntarily steps aside from the cleanup spot. Throughout his time in St. Louis — even amid swirling trade speculation — Arenado has consistently conducted himself with professionalism, and his leadership has clearly been a valuable influence on the Cardinals’ younger core.
However, some fans are questioning the bigger picture. While Arenado deserves praise for putting the team above his own ego, many were quick to ask why manager Oli Marmol didn’t initiate the lineup change himself. On social media, Cardinals supporters voiced frustration that it took Arenado’s self-awareness rather than a managerial decision to adjust a struggling lineup spot.
Nolan Arenado was willing to do what Oli Marmol wouldn’t
Arenado’s prolonged struggles at the plate — dating back to the tail end of last season — have become too glaring to ignore. It’s fair to wonder if Father Time has started to catch up with the veteran third baseman in a significant way.
Given how long his slump has lasted, it’s puzzling that the Cardinals delayed making a lineup adjustment, especially considering it was Arenado himself who initiated the move. With St. Louis in the thick of a competitive division race and several other hitters performing well, continuing to pencil Arenado into the cleanup spot felt like a self-inflicted wound.
The responsibility to make tough calls ultimately falls on the manager, and in this case, Oli Marmol seemed reluctant to act. While respecting a veteran’s legacy is understandable, leadership also requires decisiveness — and the failure to make a necessary change sooner raises questions about Marmol’s assertiveness.
Yes, credit goes to Arenado for putting the team above personal pride, but the situation highlights a deeper concern. Monday’s 11-run outburst against Detroit — in which Arenado was the lone starter without a hit — underscores how much firepower this team has. Going forward, the Cardinals need a manager who won’t hesitate to make bold decisions when performance demands it.