Cardinals icon Albert Pujols is taking a lot of criticism from fans of the Leones del Escogido team in the Dominican Republic Winter League. As I type this, Pujols' club has lost 15 of its last 21 games to fall to fourth place in the six-team league and veteran reporter/broadcaster Mike Rodriguez said the rookie manager is being "severely criticized" by upset fans and that "many are calling for the manager's dismissal."

Gee that was fast. Pujols has never managed until now, and his team is 21-20. Despite the current slump, I don't think a mediocre record disqualifies Pujols from managing the Cardinals or any MLB team in due time.

But there's also the matter of current Cardinals manager Oli Marmol; 2025 will be an important year for him and the club as he enters his fourth season as the skipper. Can the Cardinals do better than expected? Or will they stagger to a terrible season and cost ownership more ticket revenue? There is no way to answer that right now, but I am sure of this: Marmol will be given a fair chance to stay in the job and fulfill his contract in 2026. His chances of staying in the gig are probably better than some folks realize. We'll see. As I said, 2025 is a big year for Marmol, and the young players must show improvement.