The Yadier Molina absence grows more odd by the week
No updates, no timetable, no idea.
In case you’ve lived under a rock for the beginning of summer’s hellish reign, the news of Yadier Molina’s absence from the St. Louis Cardinals is entering a whole new zone of weirdness.
He’s in Puerto Rico rehabbing a sore knee, but Katie Woo of The Athletic and Ben Frederickson of the St. Louis Post Dispatch seem perplexed in their Twitter updates of the situation. It seems his absence and pending status has left a stigma around Busch Stadium as well, judging by this tweet:
One of the reasons this team is struggling so much at the moment is due to the lack of their team captain. With no offense to Adam Wainwright or any other soul in that clubhouse, Molina wears the “C” until he officially retires. He’s spent portions of just about every season on the Injured List, but he’s always spent that down time in the dugout and with the guys. Judging from Frederickson’s tweet, the team really wants their leader back.
Wouldn’t you?
But don’t overlook the mental aspect of professional sports. The largest stage in the world in baseball are the Major Leagues, where human beings either sink, swim, or find a way to tread water until an opportunity, or their talent, arrives. When I was talking to my wife about Molina’s odd absence last night at dinner, the first word that flew out of her mouth surprised me while also seeming fairly obvious: mental.
When reporters asked Molina years ago about the missing ingredient in ex-Cards pitcher Carlos Martinez, his answer was nearly as direct and simple as my wife’s response: “Mentality.”
If you have it, the water is warm in the Majors. If you don’t, either at 25 or 39 years old, it can cripple your game. Getting inside your own head is possible, even for a legendary Cardinal like Molina. All these innings caught and games later, he may be mentally fried, or close enough to go back home and reassess.
I do think he will be back, but one can’t overlook the pandemic’s relentless grasp on the game over the past couple years as a precursor to Molina’s time away from the 2022 team. Remember, he was going to retire after that 2020 season, before it was cut into a third of the schedule and included zero fans in the stands. He fed off the crowd and the energy they brought to each game.
Maybe that particular toll is tied into the finality of 2022. Along with turning 40 this month, this season is indeed his last. All the while, he has Albert Pujols back by his side and his friend, Oli Marmol, managing the team. The right ingredients don’t always make a great dish. Sometimes, it just doesn’t work.
There have also been rumors that if it weren’t for Pujols swooping in late in the offseason to reunite with St. Louis, Molina may have retired this year. He was late to spring training, and could have also been turned off by the MLB lockout.
Lockout, post-pandemic, turning 40, one final ride, relative competitive hopes but no real pitching add, etc. Add it all up and you get a lot of questions and few answers.
No one but Molina, possibly the Cards front office, and his family know what’s going on. He could just be taking his time on rehab, getting his knee ready for August and the stretch run. He could be waiting to actually turn 40 (three days from now) and add a “0” to his jersey. I kid. Nobody knows around here, but #4’s absence has been felt.
It’s not about his hitting. Molina’s bat has been dropping in effectiveness for years. It’s not his Gold Glove catching. That hasn’t been around in a few years. It’s not about his play; it’s the Yadi effect. Seeing him glare out from behind home plate at the opposing dugout or over at his own dugout carried a thrill in itself. He didn’t have to do much to entertain; just show up. At the moment, he’s not doing any of that.
The Cardinals need their captain. Will he show up? Eventually, but the reasons surrounding why he left the team indefinitely will persist until that reunion occurs.
Photo by Jeff Curry/USA Today Sports
Kinda like not running to first base.
Hope there is a good reason which is not bad.