ST. LOUIS — On Wednesday, the St. Louis Cardinals announced significant changes in their front office by appointing Larry Day as the new director of player development, while Matt Pierpont and Carl Kochan will take on the roles of director of pitching and director of performance, respectively. These decisions come after two consecutive seasons without a playoff appearance, prompting a need for restructuring within the organization.
Larry Day, who is nearing his 40th birthday on March 22, brings a wealth of experience to his new role. He previously spent ten seasons with the Cleveland Guardians, most recently working as an assistant field coordinator. Day started his career as a minor league player within the New York Yankees system during the 2007 and 2008 seasons. He transitioned to coaching at Vanderbilt, serving as the first base coach from 2008 to 2013 before taking up recruiting coordinator duties at Ohio University in 2014. His journey with Cleveland included roles as hitting coach for various minor league teams and managing teams within both the Arizona Complex League and Lake County. From 2020 to 2022, he held the position of player programs coordinator in Cleveland.
In addition to Day’s appointment, Rob Cerfolio was recently hired as the assistant general manager of player development and performance. Cerfolio joins the Cardinals after a decade with the Guardians, finishing his tenure there as the director of player development.
Matt Pierpont, at 33 years old, will oversee the minor league pitching program for the Cardinals. His background includes playing as a minor league pitcher for the Colorado Rockies between 2013 and 2019. Over the past four years, Pierpont has been with the Seattle Mariners, where he made his way up through the ranks from organization coach to pitching coordinator.
Carl Kochan, meanwhile, comes with six years of experience from the Los Angeles Dodgers, where he served as minor league performance coordinator. His previous roles included being the major league strength and conditioning coach for the San Francisco Giants.
The Cardinals also disclosed on September 30 that Chaim Bloom will take over the position of president of baseball operations from John Mozeliak after the conclusion of the 2025 season. Mozeliak has been with the organization since October 2007, first as general manager before moving into the president role in 2017.