John Mozeliak | |
|---|---|
 Mozeliak in 2015. | |
| Born | (1969-01-18)January 18, 1969 (age 56) Boulder, Colorado, U.S. |
| Education | University of Colorado |
| Occupation | Management |
| Employer | St. Louis Cardinals |
| Title | President of Baseball Operations |
| Spouse | Julie Mozeliak |
John Mozeliak (born January 18, 1969) is an Americanprofessional baseball executive who is thepresident of baseball operations of theSt. Louis Cardinals ofMajor League Baseball (MLB). Never a professional player, Mozeliak came to the Cardinals asWalt Jocketty's assistant in 1995 and became the organization's 12thgeneral manager after the 2007 season.
The winner of three Executive of the Year awards, Mozeliak has overseen the Cardinals makeplayoff appearances in six years, win oneWorld Series title, and twoNational League pennants. They have had a winning record in all but one season (2023) since he was appointed general manager. The Cardinals'minor leaguefarm system has received numerous accolades following the volume of prospects that have succeeded at the major league level, includingBaseball America bestowing the franchise with the Organization of the Year Award in 2011 and 2013. Mozeliak is signed through the 2025 season.[1]
Mozeliak attendedFairview High School inBoulder, Colorado. He played for the school's baseball team as apitcher andfirst baseman. He also playedAmerican Legion baseball.[2] Mozeliak attended theUniversity of Arizona, where he was a member ofPhi Delta Theta fraternity, before ultimately graduating from theUniversity of Colorado at Boulder.[3]
In 1993, Jay Darnell, theColorado Rockies'video coordinator, introduced Mozeliak toBryn Smith, pitcher for the Rockies. Smith was looking for a location to gofly fishing. A few days after Mozeliak took Smith fly fishing, the Rockies invited Mozeliak to serve as a batting practice pitcher, since they needed someone who could throw left handed.Dante Bichette took a liking to Mozeliak, and they created a clubhouse job for Mozeliak. He began to work withBob Gebhard, the Rockies'general manager (GM), andWalt Jocketty, the assistant GM.[2][3]
When theSt. Louis Cardinals hired Jocketty as their GM in 1995, Mozeliak went to St. Louis as well. He served as an assistant within the scouting department and later spent five seasons as Jocketty's assistant GM.[2] He became the assisting scouting director in1998. Thenext season, Mozeliak was promoted to scouting director and oversaw the drafting of talent such asAlbert Pujols andYadier Molina.[4] He garnered much attention as a major up-and-coming GM in the industry and interviewed with theCincinnati Reds andHouston Astros.[5]
On October 3, 2007, chairman of the board of directorsBill DeWitt announced that the Cardinals "had cordially and respectfully" parted ways with Jocketty based on philosophical differences of player development.[6] DeWitt named Mozeliak the interim GM. Dating back to the year before, tension arose afterJeff Luhnow, later theAstros'GM, was promoted to vice president of amateur scouting and player development. After more than a decade as GM, Luhnow's promotion tacitly signaled he had usurped that sphere of Jocketty's authority.[7]
While other candidates interviewed for the GM position, it appearedCleveland Indians assistantGMChris Antonetti was the early favorite. However, Indians ownership improved Antonetti's offer to take over the full GM position and enticed him to stay. On the evening of October 30, 2007, Mozeliak accepted the Cardinals' offer and the team formally introduced him as the new GM the next day.[8]
One of Mozeliak's first major moves was to trade iconiccenter fielderJim Edmonds to theSan Diego Padres forthird basemanDavid Freese on December 15, 2007. Although stating regret at first over trading the popular but often-injured Edmonds, Freese later proved to be integral in theCardinals' 2011 season.[9]
In2009, Mozeliak acquired sluggerMatt Holliday in a trade with theOakland Athletics and signed him to the richest contract in team history the following January, valued at $116 million.[10][11] Holliday produced an .874OPS and anOPS+ of 138 as a Cardinal, compared to 132 for his career.[12] On September 26, the Cardinals clinched their first division title during Mozeliak's tenure as GM against theColorado Rockies.[13] However, they lost to theLos Angeles Dodgers in theNLDS.[14] When Holliday was a free agent the following offseason, DeWitt became frustrated withagentScott Boras and walked away from negotiations. However, Mozeliak, who had developed a strong working relationship with DeWitt, persuaded him to sign Holliday for seven years at $17 million per year.[15]
AfterÉdgar Rentería manned shortstop for the Cardinals from1999 to2004, he left for theBoston Red Sox viafree agency. The Cardinals found difficulty filling the position. In2009, a trade involvingMark Worrell andLuke Gregerson broughtKhalil Greene from thePadres. With poor performance and a $6.5 million salary, he took time off in May and June. It was revealed that he may have been attempting to inflictinjury upon himself, indicative ofsocial anxiety disorder. Greene appeared in 77 games that season,batting just .200 with sixhome runs and 24runs batted in. That was the last time he appeared in the major leagues.[16] All told, in the 13 seasons between 2005 and 2017, the Cardinals featured 10 different Opening Day shortstops, with only David Eckstein (2005-2007) serving as the primary shortstop more than two seasons.[17] The positional flux eased with the 2017 ascendance of Paul DeJong, who started a majority of the team's games at SS for five consecutive seasons (2017-2021).
The Cardinals announced that Mozeliak endorsed a new three-year contract extension with the team through 2013 on July 15, 2010.[18] The following offseason, Mozeliak created a stir––even drawing ridicule––for inking 34-year-oldLance Berkman to a one-year, $8 million contract on December 4. Due to his 2010 results of a .248 batting average with 14 home runs and 58 RBIs in 122 games with theHouston Astros andNew York Yankees, opinions circulated that he was too old to continue to produce at his former levels.[19]
However, Berkman dramatically improved his physical shape in the offseason. Early the next season,hitting coachMark McGwire corrected a flaw in Berkman's swing that had been introduced by leg injuries and he responded with a .301 batting average, 31 home runs and 94 RBIs.[20] His 164 OPS+ was the highest of his career and his accolades for the year included anAll-Star appearance, theNL Comeback Player of the Year award and seventh place in the MVP voting.
Mozeliak engineered what proved to be an exceptional in-season move to shape the 2011 season on July 27. He traded the highly regarded but troubled center fielderColby Rasmus,relieversTrever Miller,P. J. Walters andBrian Tallet to theToronto Blue Jays forstarterEdwin Jackson, relieversOctavio Dotel andMarc Rzepczynski,outfielderCorey Patterson and three players to be named or cash.[21][22]
Still 10.5 games short of thewild card berth after 130 games on August 25, the Cardinals ended the season on a 22-9 run while capitalizing on theAtlanta Braves'collapse to avoid elimination on the season's final day, capping one of Major League Baseball's epic regular-season comebacks.[23] Dotel and Rzepczynski proved to factor significantly in making up the 10.5 games as they helped stabilize questionable bullpen performance. Dotel posted a 3.28ERA andstruck out 32 of the 96 batters he faced.[24] Rzepczynski posted a 3.97 ERA.[25] Jackson started twelve games for the Cardinals and posted a 3.58 ERA, winning five games and losing two.[26] The 10.5 games-won deficit is also the highest-surmounted at 130 games in MLB history.
In the postseason––the Cardinals' second appearance during Mozeliak's tenure as GM––Freese set the-then single postseasonRBI record with 21. He also salvaged the Cardinals from elimination in theWorld Series against theTexas Rangers by driving home the tying run on the final strike in the ninth inning of Game 6 –– which was accomplished again later that game. Tying the score twice on the final strike in one game was the first such occurrence inWorld Series history.[27] Berkman became the second batter to tie the game on the team's final strike in the ninth inning or later with a two-run single in the tenth. Freese then ended the game in the eleventh with a home run offMark Lowe.[28] Berkman and Freese became just the third and fourth hitters in World Series history to knock game-tying hits where the alternative was elimination.[29] Driven primarily by the Rasmus and Freese trades and the Berkman acquisition, Mozeliak achieved his first World Series title culminating in a game that "ranks among the greatest games in Fall Classic history" and "one of the greatest thrillers in baseball history."[28][30]
Following the 2011 World Series, the Cardinals found themselves in the position of having to negotiate to re-sign iconicfirst baseman Albert Pujols when he filed forfree agency on December 1. The Cardinals had offered $198 million over nine years the previous January. After the season concluded, the Cardinals reopened their bid with five years and $130 million.[31] Other teams reportedly pursuing him were theMiami Marlins and two "mystery teams." The Marlins' offers were for nine years, then ten, but at first neither monetary figures were disclosed nor information was available on whether ano-trade clause would be included.[32]
The Cardinals increased their offer to $200 million over ten years, then $220 million; however, the two unidentified teams eclipsed the initial offer. Miami offered $200 million then $225 million.[33][34] Pujols then signed with one of the two anonymous teams on December 8 which had been revealed through rumors just a few days before –– theLos Angeles Angels of Anaheim –– for $254 million over ten years.[35]
After signing with the Angels, Albert Pujols' wife, Diedre Pujols, commented on a St. Louis radio show that what the Cardinals had offered was an "'insult" and that they were "confused" after being told "'we want you to be a Cardinal for life.'"[31] Even so, Pujols' performance decline started before he became a free agent: in2012, he finished in career lows in multiple categories, and in2013,plantar fasciitis cut his season short.[36] Since then, Mozeliak's decision to let Pujols walk has paid off, as with the money he saved by not signing him, he extended aceAdam Wainwright and star catcherYadier Molina. Also, with the two Compensation Picks theSt. Louis Cardinals received from the Angels, they drafted 2013 postseason heroMichael Wacha and a promising young hitter who was the Cardinals' top prospect after 2014 according to MLB.com,Stephen Piscotty.
Despite the Cardinals' major league success in the 21st century spanning well before Mozeliak's tenure as GM –– they have just one losing season and nine playoff appearancessince 2000 –– the farm system had lagged behind until more recent seasons. Between 2000 and 2007, the highest rank the farm system garnered was 21st; between 2002 and 2005 it "ranked 30th, 28th, 28th and 30th."[37][38] After 2011,Baseball America bestowed the Cardinals franchise with their firstOrganization of the Year award.[39] Seventeen of the 25 players on the 2011 playoff roster were players who had spent their entire careers with the Cardinals.[40]ESPN'sKeith Law andBaseball Prospectus also ranked the Cardinals organization #1 for the 2013 season.[41][42]
After losingshortstopRafael Furcal to injury in 2012, the Cardinals called upPete Kozma to replace Furcal. Noted for his defense, Kozma had shown a poor track record in the minor leagues as a hitter, producing a .652on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) in 671 minor league games.[43] However, during his major league call-up in 2012, he batted .333 with a .952 OPS in 82plate appearances. His skillful hitting continued in the playoffs, as he hit an RBI single in Game 5 against theWashington Nationals in theNLDS that ultimately proved to be the game and series winner, allowing the Cardinals to advance to theNLCS. Kozma became the starting shortstop the next season, but could not sustain his improved hitting in the Major Leagues, slumping to a .548 OPS.[44] In the followingWorld Series against theBoston Red Sox, a two-play error contributed to a Red Sox' Game 1 victory on the way to the Red Sox winning the Series.[45]
On February 14, 2013, the Cardinalsextended Mozeliak's contract by three years to end after the 2016 season.[46] Late inspring training 2013, right-handedstarting pitcherAdam Wainwright agreed to a five-year, $97.5 million extension that runs through 2018, the richest contract the Cardinals have awarded to a pitcher.[47] That spring, the Cardinals also signed first basemanAllen Craig to a five-year, $32 million contract.
After making it to the2013 World Series only to lose to theBoston Red Sox, the Cardinals addressed weaknesses the following offseason atshortstop andcenter field. First, they traded Freese and relief pitcherFernando Salas to theLos Angeles Angels of Anaheim for center fielderPeter Bourjos and right fielderRandal Grichuk.[48]
Just two days later, they signed free agent shortstopJhonny Peralta to a four-year, $53 million contract.[49] The Cardinals still had yet to find consistency at shortstop since the days of Rentería, and Peralta was seen as a player who could bring that consistency. However, the signing drew scrutiny because he had served a 50-game suspension for his connection to theBiogenesis of America scandal earlier in theseason.
Fellow players such asBrad Ziegler of theArizona Diamondbacks publicly complained that the 50-game suspension was not enough of a deterrent, because it appeared to fail to prevent players who violated the collective bargaining agreement's banned substances use policy to receive compensation for their performances equal to those who had not been found to violate the policy. Mozeliak defended the contract, stating that the Cardinals were not self-appointed "morality police". He further explained that "character and makeup are something we weigh into our decision-making. In his case, he admitted what he did, he took responsibility for it. I feel like he has paid for his mistakes, and obviously if he were to make another one, then it would be a huge disappointment."[50]
The Cardinals signedAll-Star second basemanMatt Carpenter to a six-year, $52 million extension on March 6, 2014. Included was an option for 2020 worth $18.5 million. The year prior, he led the major leagues inhits,runs scored, anddoubles while batting .318 and becoming a regular at a position he had yet to play as professional. Mozeliak cited his work ethic as another factor in the extension.[51]
On April 12,2014, the Cardinals announced they had extended Mozeliak's contract by two years through the 2018 season.[52] They won the division this season but fell to theGiants in theNLCS.
Reports surfaced on June 16,2015, that theFederal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were reviewing an alleged incident involving Cardinals' front office officialshacking into theHouston Astros' database of players, scouting reports and proprietary statistics. It was regarded as the first known case ofcorporateespionage involvingcomputer network hacking inprofessional sports.[53] The matter wasn't adjudicated until January 30, 2017 whenCommissionerRob Manfred ruled that the Cardinals forfeit its top two selections inthat year's MLB Draft (numbers 56 and 75 in the second and competitive balance round B respectively) and $2 million in damages to the Astros.[54]
On September 19, 2015, the Cardinals became the first team in MLB to clinch a playoff spot thatseason. It also extended a franchise record of five consecutive seasons of reaching the postseason, a record which the club had set the previous season.[55]
On June 30, 2017, Mozeliak was promoted to president of baseball operations, while assistant GMMike Girsch was named the new vice president and general manager of the Cardinals. These promotions came with contract guarantees for both through the 2020 season.[56]
After a three-year absence from the postseason, the Cards won the NL Central in 2019 and defeated theAtlanta Braves in a five game NLDS. However, they went on to fall in a four game sweep to theWashington Nationals in theNLCS.
In 2020, the Cardinals would only end up playing 58 total games due toCOVID-19 pandemic that had reached American shores in late January. The Cardinals were hit particularly hard by COVID, with many games being delayed and cancelled due to persistent outbreaks in the clubhouse.[1] As a result of the shortened season, MLB expanded theplayoff format for 2020 to eight teams in each league, in which the Cardinals landed themselves in as the five-seed team, finishing 2nd in the NL Central with a final record of 30–28. The Cardinals visitedSan Diego for a 3-game Wild Card series, where they took Game 1 but fell in Games 2 and 3 to lose the series and end their season.
In 2021 the Cardinals finished the season at 90–72, with help from a franchise-record 17-game winning streak in September to put them into the postseason.[5] The team also was the first to have five players winGold Glove Awards in the same season, with those being first basemanPaul Goldschmidt, second basemanTommy Edman, third basemanNolan Arenado, left fielderTyler O'Neill and center fielderHarrison Bader.[7] In theNL Wild Card Game, the Cardinals faced the 106-winLos Angeles Dodgers, where both teams battled each other for eight innings in a 1-1 ballgame beforeAlex Reyes surrendered awalk-off 2-run homerun toChris Taylor, ending the Cardinals historic season.[10] Eight days later, the Cardinals dismissedMike Shildt, who had been manager since 2018, and elevated bench coachOliver Marmol in his place.[11]
In March 2022, Mozeliak and the Cardinals worked a deal with free agent and franchise playerAlbert Pujols for him to return on a 1-year, $2.5 million deal to finish his career with other franchise legendYadier Molina.[12]
In the first year of managing forOliver Marmol, the Cardinals were guided to a 93–69 record, which was enough to win them the NL Central for the first time since 2019. Throughout the year the team had several individual successes and milestones, which most notably included Albert Pujols' 700th career homerun in a 11–0 victory vs. the Dodgers in Los Angeles on September 23.[14] On September 14,Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina made their MLB-record 325th start as battery mates, breaking the record previously held by theDetroit Tigers pair ofMickey Lolich andBill Freehan.[15] First basemanPaul Goldschmidt won theNL MVP, and third basemanNolan Arenado was a MVP finalist.
Going into the postseason as the 3-seed, the Cardinals were the favorites at home against thePhiladelphia Phillies, who had made the postseason as the 6-seed as part of MLB's expanded playoff format. This was the Phillies first postseason trip since2011. The Cardinals, however, were upset in a2-game sweep, resulting in the third straight first round playoff exit in three years for St. Louis.[16]
On February 13, 2023, the Cardinals signed Mozeliak to a contract extension that runs through the 2025 season. The Cardinals finished the 2023 season with a 71–91 record.[57]
Mozeliak, his wife Julie, daughter Allyson and son Will reside inSt. Louis. He is the NationalTrustee for theFoundation Fighting Blindness.[4]
| Preceded by | St. Louis CardinalsGeneral manager 2007–2017 | Succeeded by |