Newly renovated Spring Training home a parallel for Cards' roster rebuild

ST. LOUIS -- Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium, the Spring Training home of the Cardinals since 1998 and the Marlins since 2003, will be almost unrecognizable to the teams when they arrive in a matter of days with the new batting tunnels rising out of the ground and eye-catching expansions to the clubhouses, weight rooms and meeting spaces.

Mounds of dirt and sand, unfinished outer sidings to buildings and heavy machinery still dot grounds that are abuzz with constant beeping noises, whirring drills and construction workers scurrying about. For the time being, the whack of hammers has replaced the unmistakable sounds of bats hitting balls, hard hats are in places usually reserved for helmets and those doing the heavy lifting are wearing steel-toed shoes instead of metal spikes.

Cardinals players, many of them displaced to a nearby hitting facility most of the winter, will be greeted by “Under Construction” signs. The parallels between a youth-based Cards club at the beginning stages of its first full-blown rebuild in more than three decades and the remodeled, 28-year-old facility are blatant to those craning their necks for a first peek at all the changes -- to the facilities and the roster.

President of baseball operations Chaim Bloom, who took over a franchise that was outside of the playoffs the past three years and one riding a six-year run without a playoff series victory, announced the club’s plans to retool by dealing veterans Nolan Arenado, Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras (and gobs of cash) and replaced them with prospects hoping to stick in the bigs. Bloom, whose name is apropos for what the Cards are hoping to see from a bevy of their young players, has carefully and strategically avoided calling this a “rebuild.” Even the DeWitt ownership group has balked at the notion of a rebuild -- even though the club is younger than ever and will open Spring Training with sawdust flying through the air and construction materials strewn about.

“It’s a build, but I don’t know about a rebuild,” chairman and CEO Bill DeWitt Jr. said. “Chaim’s a draft-and-develop president of baseball ops, and his history with Tampa Bay was really good, and the Red Sox made some great moves. We’re on the same page with what he plans to do, which is build, don’t give up Draft choices and accumulate Draft choices. It could take some time, but hopefully not long, and we’re excited.”

Bloom, who was given the unenviable task of trading superstar Mookie Betts to the Dodgers upon taking over in Boston in 2020, knows that the measure of success for the Cards in ‘26 likely won’t reach the levels of the 11 World Series banners flying atop the scoreboard at Busch Stadium. However, Bloom is preaching urgency over patience and he wants his renovated staff -- and Cardinals players -- pushing daily for success, even if the franchise’s targets are much further into the future.

“I’ve tried to be very clear about this, that we’re not prioritizing short-term success over what needs to happen in the long term, but my mindset is that you’re never going to stop trying to win and you will always assess where you are by the standings,” Bloom stressed. “That’s not going to change, but we can’t let that distract us from where we need to go.

“But regardless of what that win total is, you want to see that core continue to take shape and progress. I’d like to be able to look up at the end of 2026 and feel like the picture of what that group looks like … is further ahead than it was.”

The starting lineup manager Oliver Marmol will trot out on Opening Day at Busch Stadium on March 26 could be one of the youngest ones in the storied history of the franchise. Relievers Ryne Stanek (34), Riley O’Brien (30) and Nick Raquet (30) are the only players at least 30 years old on the roster, while Brendan Donovan -- who turned 29 years old on Jan. 16 -- is the oldest position player. Donovan, the team’s lone All-Star in 2025, has been coveted by several playoff teams, but the Cardinals have stood firm on their demands in any deal and seem poised to have him at Roger Dean Stadium next week.

The youth is so rampant on the roster that 25-year-old starting pitcher Michael McGreevy -- who has yet to spend a full season at the big league level -- admitted that he suddenly feels like a grizzled veteran on this St. Louis staff.

“Being a vet came quick,” joked McGreevy, who has compiled an 11-4 record over 21 games (19 starts) in MLB cameos in 2024-25. “I have 91 days [of MLB service time], and now I’m a vet. … It’s weird being the vet and being this young, but it’s cool.”

Please pardon the dust -- both around the renovated stadium and the baby-faced roster -- when the Cardinals begin in earnest on Feb. 11.