Cardinals' Oli Marmol is MLB's best manager amid surprisingly hot start

They traded away a ton of good veterans like Sonny Gray, Nolan Arenado, Willson Contreras, and Brendan Donovan.

And yet, the Cardinals are 20-13 and have been one of the best clubs in the sport. Marmol is working some magic in Chaim Bloom's first year with the team, as this rebuilding Cardinals roster is somehow playing at elite levels.

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Marmol led the Cardinals to a 93-69 record in his first year in 2022, and followed it up with some very mediocre at-best seasons, and a 78-84 season in 2025 that had some big questions about his job security.

But the Cardinals stuck by their manager, and through the first few days of May, he's proven them right. The Cardinals are 20-13 with a .606 winning percentage, and have the same record as the Los Angeles Dodgers, the World Series favorite this year.

This might not last for the full season, but even just this hot start for the Cardinals has Marmol more than deserving of the best manager award so far. This is a rebuilding team, and yet, they're in the thick of it as the best team in all of baseball so far.

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