How Oli Marmol is managing playing time between catchers Iván Herrera and Pedro Pagés

ST. LOUIS — Throughout this transition season for the St. Louis Cardinals, the question that will circulate the most is how the organization can develop players and win ballgames at the same time.

The question has put manager Oli Marmol in a tough place. The Cardinals (4-2) had a strong opening week, scoring 42 runs in six games and posting an MLB-best +17 run differential. Aiming to build upon that early success, Marmol must also extend playing time and growth opportunities to players, weighing their strengths with their shortcomings and projecting how each could affect a game scenario in real time.



Advertisement How he’s managing his two catchers, Iván Herrera and Pedro Pagés, is a perfect example. The Cardinals knew all offseason they would carry Herrera and Pagés as their two catchers on their active roster. They also knew they would not need to designate one as the primary backstop over the other.

Using both players in a tandem was their preferred plan, but that doesn’t mean that plan doesn’t have drawbacks. Herrera and Pagés are very different catchers. Herrera, 24, is one of the team’s best hitters.

He has a career. 292 average and .771 OPS and is off to a great start this year with seven hits and two walks in 17 plate appearances — including a historic three-homer performance Wednesday.

He rose through the Cardinals farm system as a bat-first player, but he’s become a better framer and blocker over the last few years, so his receiving is no longer a forefront concern. Iván Herrera becomes the first catcher in Cardinals history with three home runs in one game! 💣 pic.twitter.

com/pJ7SJ1wpWw — St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) April 2, 2025 What is a concern is his arm. Herrera has struggled to control the run game since arriving in the major leagues.

It reached a peak last season, when Herrera threw out just four runners out of 59 stolen-base attempts. So far this season, he is 0-for-5. Pagés, 26, is the safer defensive option.

His caught-stealing percentage last season (18.7 percent) was still below league average, but his arm at least gives opposing runners pause. His bat is not as consistent as Herrera’s, however, and though he has shown flashes of pop, such as belting a three-run homer Sunday in his first start of the season, Herrera remains the offensive favorite.

Because of this, the tandem of catcher usage has varied not just by game but also by inning. Take Monday’s game, which the Cardinals lost to the Los Angeles Angels 5-4 in 10 innings. Advertisement Herrera started the game against Angels left-hander Tyler Anderson, going 0-for-3 before he was pulled after the sixth inning for Pagés.

Though Marmol had used Pagés as a defensive replacement in two games already, those substitutions came in the ninth and with the Cardinals leading. In this situation, St. Louis had a one-run lead after six innings, and Herrera had served as the final out of the frame.

Still, if the Angels scored, Herrera’s spot in the order would likely come up again in a pivotal scoring moment, one when the Cardinals would prefer to have him take the at-bat instead of Pagés. That scenario weighed on Marmol’s mind, but not as much as where the Angels were in their batting order at the time of the substitution. The bottom half of Los Angeles’ lineup was due up, with multiple players — including Kyren Paris and Luis Rengifo — who can run.

Marmol elected to better control the run game and swapped Pagés into the lineup for Herrera, hitting fifth. The Angels scored in the seventh, tying the score at 3, where it remained in the bottom of the ninth. As predicted, the spot in the lineup previously set for Herrera came up critical.

With runners on the corners and two outs, it was Pagés who took the at-bat instead. He flew out to right, sending the game to extras. “If we were at a different part of their lineup, I probably let Iván ride.

But when four or five guys can take a bag, and you have a one-run lead, it makes the decision for you,” Marmol said after the game, acknowledging later that had the Cardinals been trailing, Herrera would have remained in the game. When asked what needed to change in his catching equation to help make in-game decisions easier, Marmol was candid. “I’m not sure just yet,” Marmol said.

“I’m going to be as honest as possible. It’s a tough decision.” #STLCards catcher Pedro Pagés shows why he is in the lineup tonight by making a perfect throw to second base to nail #LAAngels speedster Luis Rengifo, who was trying to swipe the bag.

pic.twitter.com/2LvQzC2bdz — John Denton (@JohnDenton555) April 2, 2025 Herrera’s throwing woes stem from his arm in general.

To his credit, Marmol said, Herrera has worked tirelessly to improve. He spent weeks over the offseason in Tampa, Fla., working with Driveline to improve his arm strength.

The club has also changed Herrera’s throwing motion from standing up to on his knees and expects to see that transfer into games soon. Advertisement “We’re seeing if this gives him a better shot of controlling the running game,” Marmol said. “It seems quicker.

His body moves a little better, and his arm slots better from his knees. So we’ll see if that gives him an opportunity to control the running game better than he has.” “He’s been working on trying to position his lower half better and have quicker feet from the regular position,” Marmol said.

“We’d like to see what it looks like from the knees.” Herrera is not oblivious that his throwing arm will cost him playing time. He’s encouraged by the strides he’s made behind the plate, but knows there will continue to be questions about his long-term career at catcher if he continues to struggle controlling the run game.

“I’m trying to give everything I can,” Herrera said. “I try to take good at-bats — I’m not going to get a hit every single time, but I can at least grind through an at-bat, make the pitcher tired for the next guy. That’s what I’ve been trying to do.

I’m not trying to be selfish, I’m trying to play for the team. I’ll be out there whenever they need me, and if they need to take me out for what’s best for the team, I understand it. “There’s always room to improve, but my receiving and blocking has been good.

The only struggle I have so far is throwing. I’m working on it, it’s not working right now, but it’s going to click. I do see better signs from last year.

” What helps Marmol’s decision-making is knowing how much he can trust Pagés, who is consistently praised by pitchers and staff alike for his preparation and game planning. Though his bat doesn’t play as well as Herrera’s — Pagés hit .238/.

281/.376 in 68 games last year — he could be another player who benefits from new hitting coach Brant Brown. Marmol believes so, at least, saying Pagés can develop into a better hitter.

Advertisement “At the end of the day, I know my place, and I just have to be ready every day,” Pagés said. “The biggest thing is having a plan. Even when I’m not playing, I’m looking at what the pitcher is doing that day, how Iván is calling the game, so when I get in there it’s not fresh off the bat.

It’s more, I know what they did, so now go execute. I think I’m handling it pretty well.” Pagés stays ready behind the scenes by taking note of the same things Marmol and bench coach Daniel Descalso do.

On top of his standard prep work, he’s monitoring who’s due up for the opposing team, where the Cardinals are in their batting order, and what each team’s bullpen could do. It’s here where his preparedness comes through — and helps Marmol feel more comfortable using him in a pinch. “Everything has been pretty much put on the table,” Pagés said.

“They told me what the deal was after game No. 1. They told me be ready and pay attention, and be ready to go when we call on you.

” PEDRO POWER! ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/ZnPpfHmgB3 — St.

Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) March 30, 2025 As with other areas of the roster, the Cardinals’ catching dynamic is not perfect. There will be times, such as Monday, when Marmol’s substitution plan backfires. There will also be times, as in Thursday’s home opener , when it works seamlessly.

And there will be risks: If one catcher is subbed out for another, what will happen if that catcher gets hurt or an emergency arises? St. Louis will begrudgingly use Willson Contreras behind the plate — though that is truly regarded as a “break glass in case of emergency” scenario. This is the balance Marmol, Herrera and Pagés must strike, at least until either player develops further.

Throwing improvement from Herrera could make this moot. Increased offensive production from Pagés could tip the scales in his favor. Advertisement Either way, the Cardinals are committed to giving Herrera as much opportunity as possible to grow in this transition year.

“His framing has been good, blocking has been good,” Marmol said. “His ability to prep for the opposition is better, he has a better process for that. A lot of things are headed in the right direction.

He’s definitely determined to improve. That’s all you can ask for.” (Photo of Iván Herrera: Joe Puetz / Getty Images).