The St. Louis Cardinals are making it clear: the rebuild is real, and it’s moving fast.
After a disappointing 2025 season that saw them finish 78-84 and miss the playoffs for the third straight year, the organization has hit the reset button in a big way. With Chaim Bloom now steering the ship as president of baseball operations, the Cardinals are shedding salary, moving veterans, and laying the groundwork for a younger, more flexible roster.
Bloom has wasted no time putting his stamp on the team. Since taking over, he’s overseen the departures of key veterans like Sonny Gray, Willson Contreras, and Nolan Arenado-big names with big contracts.
The message? This is a full-scale reboot, not a patch job.
The Cardinals are clearing the books and retooling with an eye on long-term sustainability.
But don’t mistake this for a tank job. Bloom isn’t just offloading contracts-he’s actively reshaping the roster.
And according to comments made during the team’s annual Winter Warm-up event at Ballpark Village, he’s not done yet. Bloom told fans that the club is still looking to add offense, specifically mentioning the need for a right-handed outfielder.
One name that drew applause from the crowd: Harrison Bader.
Bader, of course, is no stranger to St. Louis.
A third-round draft pick by the Cardinals, he made his debut in 2017 and spent six seasons patrolling center field at Busch Stadium. Known for his elite defense and fiery energy, Bader became a fan favorite before being traded.
Most recently, he played under a one-year, $4.75 million deal with the Minnesota Twins in 2025, which included a $10 million club option. After being dealt to the Phillies at the deadline and making a late-season impact, Bader hit free agency once again.
Bloom didn’t confirm any negotiations with Bader, nor did he comment on what kind of contract the 31-year-old is seeking. But he did say there’s room for a right-handed outfielder, and Bader remains a possibility. That alone was enough to get the fanbase buzzing.
In a video conference last week, Bloom acknowledged the scale of the challenge ahead. “You’re only doing something like this if you’re in a position as an organization where you’re not where you want to be,” he said. “It’s a sobering thought on the ground we need to cover and the distance between where we are and where we want to get.”
That honesty is part of what’s making this rebuild feel different. Bloom isn’t sugarcoating the situation.
He knows the Cardinals are a long way from contending, and he’s not pretending otherwise. But he’s also not using the team’s financial constraints as an excuse.
When asked about how the Cardinals stack up against big-spending clubs like the Dodgers, Bloom was direct: “We have different parameters from the Dodgers. Therefore, if we want to win, we have to go about it differently.
But we can never, ever allow that to be an excuse. We’re going to stamp out that mindset.”
That mindset shift is already showing up in how the front office is operating. The Cardinals opened 2025 with the 19th-highest payroll in baseball-about $141.5 million.
But that number is dropping fast. Fangraphs projects their 2026 payroll to be around $104 million, ranking 23rd in the league.
They also have another $15 million due in luxury tax, a reminder of how top-heavy the roster had become.
What Bloom is trying to build now is a younger, hungrier team with room to grow. He spoke about the energy that comes from starting fresh: “It’s been energizing for our group, and I hope it’s been energizing for a lot of our staff to know that we’re able to reboot this around a group that is hungry and a group that has to come together and form its own identity.”
That identity is still forming, but the early signs suggest a front office committed to doing things differently-and doing them right. Whether or not Bader returns to St. Louis, the Cardinals are clearly looking for players who fit the new mold: athletic, cost-effective, and ready to contribute to a team that’s building from the ground up.
The road back to contention won’t be short or easy. But with Chaim Bloom at the helm, the Cardinals are embracing the grind-and betting big on a future that looks a whole lot different than their recent past.