St. Louis Cardinals GM John Mozeliak up for challenge without Albert Pujols on team -MLB Update
There is no doubt that the St. Louis Cardinals have been dealt a huge blow after losing their superstar player, Albert Pujols, along with losing a large fan base that followed the player and thus brought big business for the team, but being the general manager
of the club, John Mozeliak, is up for the challenge and actually considers it to be an opportunity to start afresh.
For Mozeliak, it opens up new opportunities and with that means time to take risks and capitalise on things he would have let go in the past.
"It really is," Mozeliak said after he had been informed by Pujols that he will be accepting the Los Angeles offer of 10-years, $254 million. "I was like, 'Wow, it does create some flexibility for the organization.' We knew that was a possibility, and that's
what we'll try to do."
One thing that the Cardinals are looking into for a long term situation is clearing a spot on the team and readying finances for re-signing Adam Wainwright if he chooses to become a free-agent in the future, which could be two years from now.
The situation which the Cardinals will be facing at the moment are that Mozeliak must fill the open spots in his team for the upcoming 2012 Major League Baseball (MLN) regular season and begin along with pursue talks with the free agents he finds necessary
on the clubs roster.
For the veteran GM, shopping around the vast free agent market would be the first option on doing that, which could lead to negotiating in trades around the league.
"My preference would be through free agency if we could because I think our farm system is in such great shape," Mozeliak added. "It's strong. I'd hate to really deplete that, but we will explore some trade opportunities between now and February."
It might not be sure how the absence of Albert Pujols will affect the St. Louis Cardinals in the upcoming season, but one thing is certain that GM John Mozeliak is not too worried about any of the rumours floating around about his team being nothing without
their star player.
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