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In his response, Mozeliak referenced Marmol’s “roots” in player development and added, “Candidly, he was always someone I thought was going to be a farm director one day.”

That comment sinks in more with each passing day as the Cardinals continue this season with a stated emphasis on providing “runway,” especially for young sluggers Jordan Walker and Nolan Gorman.

The assumption that accompanies this idea of runway is that Walker and Gorman will get regular at-bats regardless of struggles and despite potential alternatives. Walker entered Monday with a slash line of .198 /.261/.274 in 115 plate appearances, while Gorman started the day slashing .167/.274/.300 in 73 plate appearances.

On the surface, it would seem as though the Cardinals took any real decision-making out of the hands of Marmol and his staff with this approach.

However, Marmol’s perspective on the daily implementation of runway shines a different light on the matter. Marmol also revealed that runway isn’t endless, not even for Walker and Gorman.

Yes, there's a point when the Cardinals would discuss pulling the plug. Though the determining factors on cutting short a player’s runway won’t necessarily be viewable in a box score.

“There’s runway in the sense of allowing them to fail,” Marmol said. “We went into the year knowing that this would look different, and we don’t want them looking over their shoulder every week bases on, ‘If I don’t get two knocks tonight, I’m going to be in Memphis.’

“But that runway is also not forever. You’re gauging is how they’re responding to the failure.”

The Cardinals recognize there’s a point when allowing these guys to fail on this stage becomes counterproductive.

Relief pitcher Ryan Fernandez, who made his major league debut last season and became a key bullpen figure, provides an example on the pitching side.

Fernandez made 62 appearances last season as a Rule 5 draft pick and posted a 3.51 ERA as he moved into a high-leverage role by the end of the season. His 12 holds were the most by a Cardinals rookie since Giovanny Gallegos in 2019.

Fernandez struck out multiple batters in 23 of his outings, and he allowed just 31.3% of inherited runners to score as his slider ranked among the top 12 pitches in the majors in terms of run value and hard-hit percentage.

Unfortunately, this season had not started out in a similar fashion. Fernandez struggled to the tune of 11.42 ERA and a 2.31 WHIP in 11 appearances. His slider got hit often (.500 opponent’s batting average on that pitch) and got hit hard (66.7% hard-hit rate).

The Cardinals sent him to Triple-A Memphis with a plan to hopefully get him back on track.

“The last thing you want is that runway, the failure, starting to effect their overall mindset,” Marmol said. “If at some point they’re defeated beyond being able to overcome it at this level because of the scrutiny that this level brings, then you have to make a decision.

“But that’s based on knowing their personality, knowing how much of it they can handle. How much failure they can handle. Some are more than others. There are certain dudes that could wear it and take the beating up here and still be with the big league staff and make improvements along the way. There are other guys that at some point you make that call for them.”

This is not paint by numbers. It’s not a scenario where a certain day on the calendar means a call must be made on a player. Yet there’s an ongoing assessment of how a player is handling the ups and downs that play a larger part in the decision-making process than a batting average or an ERA.

There’s probably an incentive for players to put on a false face. Even if they are — to steal a famous phrase from Anthony Rizzo — a glass case of emotion inside, they might try to hide that.

After all, being in the big leagues beats being in the minors. So why not tell Marmol and the staff what they want to hear to avoid Memphis?

That’s where the rapport and familiarity with the players becomes critical for the coaching staff.

“You know your guys,” Marmol said. “You know who can and who can’t and how they’re actually doing. For the most part, these guys have been very honest with how they’re actually handling that, which in turn helps us get to where we want quicker the more honest they are.”

So if you’re wondering what it would take for the Cardinals to consider changing direction on their plans to get Walker and Gorman as close to 500 at-bats in the big leagues this season as possible, it will have to be a lack of being able to make adjustments combined with an inability to handle the struggles mentally.

“That’s when you have the conversation," Marmol said over the weekend. "But that’s not where we’re at right now."