RetroSimba

(Updated Jan. 13, 2020)

General manager Walt Jocketty, who made an array of trades that transformed the Cardinals into perennial contenders, was the victim of an internal management mess.

Cardinals owner Bill DeWitt Jr. became enamored of a data-driven consultant, Jeff Luhnow, who had business acumen. DeWitt brought Luhnow onto the management team, promoted him and put him in charge of the Cardinals’ player development group.

In essence, Jocketty was head of major-league baseball operations and Luhnow became head of minor-league baseball operations.

The problem was DeWitt did this without gaining the support of Jocketty. Though Luhnow reported to Jocketty, their relationship was icy _ Luhnow was DeWitt’s guy, not Jocketty’s _ and created division and tension throughout the front office.

DeWitt expected Jocketty and Luhnow to work out their differences and create organizational harmony.

Jocketty, feeling undercut and underappreciated, couldn’t bring himself to work collaboratively with a baseball newcomer with whom he had wide philosophical differences.

DeWitt had said he hired Luhnow to be a “problem solver.”

The problem-maker, in DeWitt’s view, was Jocketty.

On Oct. 3, 2007, DeWitt surprised nearly everyone by firing Jocketty. The dismissal came a year after the Cardinals had won their first World Series championship in 24 seasons.

Redbirds revived

In 1994, when Anheuser-Busch owned the Cardinals, Jocketty was hired to replace Dal Maxvill as general manager. At the time, Jocketty was assistant general manager of the Rockies.

A year later, in 1995, Jocketty hired Tony La Russa to be the Cardinals’ manager. Jocketty and La Russa had worked together in the Athletics organization.

In 1996, a group led by DeWitt completed the purchase of the Cardinals from Anheuser-Busch.

With new ownership expressing a commitment to winning, Jocketty and La Russa went to work rebuilding a Cardinals club that hadn’t been to the postseason since 1987 and hadn’t won a World Series championship since 1982.

After qualifying for the postseason once in their first four years together, the leadership team of DeWitt, Jocketty and La Russa got the Cardinals into the postseason six times in a seven-year stretch from 2000-2006. The 2006 team won the World Series title.

Jocketty largely was responsible for the turnaround. His trades brought talent such as Mark McGwire, Jim Edmonds, Scott Rolen, Edgar Renteria, Darryl Kile, Woody Williams, Larry Walker and Adam Wainwright, to name just a few.

Front office duel

Though the Cardinals had become successful, DeWitt determined the organization needed a different approach to scouting and player development. DeWitt hired Luhnow in October 2003 for the newly created position of vice president for baseball development.

Luhnow and Jocketty clashed. Communication between Luhnow and Jocketty and their staffs broke down.

“There was basically a difference of philosophy,” Jocketty said to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. He added, “It’s not a way I’m comfortable operating.”

Luhnow said, “I wasn’t trying to cram things down people’s throats,” but added, “I have definitely stimulated a lot of debate since I’ve been here.”

John Mozeliak, Cardinals assistant general manager, was placed in the uncomfortable role of being the conduit between Jocketty and Luhnow.

“(Mozeliak) has done a very good job of staying above the fray,” DeWitt said.

Said Cardinals president Mark Lamping: “(Mozeliak) was sometimes torn between two factions within baseball operations. Tough job for anybody to do that.”

Divorce court

After the championship high of 2006, the Cardinals finished with a losing record (78-84) in 2007.

On Oct. 3, three days after the end of the 2007 season, Jocketty was called to a morning meeting at DeWitt’s house in Clayton, Mo. Jocketty didn’t know what to expect.

During the 45-minute session, DeWitt, saying it was “time to move forward with undivided vision and purpose,” fired Jocketty, though the owner chose to frame the departure as a mutual decision. DeWitt said he and Jocketty “were in agreement our relationship … had likely run its course.”

Joe Strauss of the Post-Dispatch cited “a widening front office split” and “Jocketty’s refusal to embrace the new structure” as reasons for DeWitt’s decision.

“I don’t think it played out where we could close the divide,” DeWitt said. “There had been a divide from prior years, but not as severe as it became.”

Said Lamping: “A division within baseball operations continuing without a common purpose just doesn’t work.”

Tangled web

Jocketty had a year remaining on his contract and DeWitt said he would pay him the $1 million in salary for 2008.

Jocketty asked DeWitt to hold off announcing the dismissal to the media until he had a chance to tell his son, a high school junior, who turned 17 that day. DeWitt agreed. The announcement was made at 3 p.m.

Soon after Jocketty departed the meeting, DeWitt called La Russa at his residence in California. La Russa said he was “surprised and disappointed” by Jocketty’s departure.

“I thought Walt would be back,” said La Russa.

Reflecting on his relationship with Luhnow, Jocketty said, “There are probably things I could have done and should have done to try and make it work better, but I wasn’t comfortable. I didn’t do it.”

Regarding his tenure with the Cardinals from 1994-2007, Jocketty said, “We’ve had one of the most successful eras in Cardinals history. I hope that is how it is remembered.”

Three weeks after the shakeup, La Russa, to the surprise of many, signed to return as Cardinals manager. On Oct. 31, Mozeliak was named to succeed Jocketty.

La Russa and Mozeliak led the Cardinals to a World Series championship in 2011.

Jocketty became general manager of the Reds in 2008 and went on to serve the club in a variety of executive roles.

Luhnow left the Cardinals in December 2011 to become general manager of the Astros.

Four years later, it was learned a member of the Cardinals front office unlawfully had hacked into the Astros’ database. In 2016, Cardinals scouting director Chris Correa pleaded guilty to the crime and was sentenced to prison.

On Jan. 13, 2020, the Astros fired Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch after the two were suspended for the 2020 season by Major League Baseball for their roles in a scandal involving the stealing of signs given by catchers to pitchers of opposing teams.