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John Mozeliak
John Mozeliak (born January 18, 1969) is an American professional baseball executive who served as general manager and president of baseball operations of the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2007 to 2025. Never a professional player, Mozeliak originally came to the Cardinals in 1995 as then-GM Walt Jocketty's assistant.
Mozeliak's tenure included 10 postseason berths, two National League pennants, and a World Series championship in 2011. He posted a franchise-record 15 consecutive winning seasons from 2008 to 2022, and his 1,521 wins are the most in the NL during that span. During his time, the Cardinals' minor league farm system received numerous accolades following the volume of prospects that succeeded at the major league level, including Baseball America bestowing the franchise with the Organization of the Year Award in 2011 and 2013.
Mozeliak attended Fairview High School in Boulder, Colorado. He played for the school's baseball team as a pitcher and first baseman. He also played American Legion Baseball. Mozeliak attended the University of Arizona, where he was a member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity, before ultimately graduating from the University of Colorado Boulder.
In 1993, Jay Darnell, the Colorado Rockies' video coordinator, introduced Mozeliak to Bryn Smith, pitcher for the Rockies. Smith was looking for a location to go fly fishing. A few days after Mozeliak took Smith fly fishing, the Rockies invited Mozeliak to serve as a batting practice pitcher, since they needed someone who could throw left handed. Dante Bichette took a liking to Mozeliak, and they created a clubhouse job for Mozeliak. He began to work with Bob Gebhard, the Rockies' general manager (GM), and Walt Jocketty, the assistant GM.
When the St. Louis Cardinals hired Jocketty as their GM in 1995, Mozeliak went to St. Louis as well. He served as an assistant within the scouting department and later spent five seasons as Jocketty's assistant GM. He became the assisting scouting director in 1998. The next season, Mozeliak was promoted to scouting director and oversaw the drafting of talent such as Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina. He garnered much attention as a major up-and-coming GM in the industry and interviewed with the Cincinnati Reds and Houston Astros.
On October 3, 2007, chairman of the board of directors William DeWitt Jr. announced that the Cardinals "had cordially and respectfully" parted ways with Jocketty based on philosophical differences of player development. DeWitt named Mozeliak the interim GM. Dating back to the year before, tension arose after Jeff Luhnow, later the Astros' GM, was promoted to vice president of amateur scouting and player development. After more than a decade as GM, Luhnow's promotion tacitly signaled he had usurped that sphere of Jocketty's authority.
While other candidates interviewed for the GM position, it appeared Cleveland Indians assistant GM Chris Antonetti was the early favorite. However, Indians ownership improved Antonetti's offer to take over the full GM position and enticed him to stay. On the evening of October 30, 2007, Mozeliak accepted the Cardinals' offer and the team formally introduced him as the new GM the next day.
One of Mozeliak's first major moves was to trade iconic center fielder Jim Edmonds to the San Diego Padres for minor league third baseman David Freese on December 15, 2007. Although stating regret at first over trading the popular but often-injured Edmonds, Freese later proved to be integral in the Cardinals' 2011 season.
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John Mozeliak
John Mozeliak (born January 18, 1969) is an American professional baseball executive who served as general manager and president of baseball operations of the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2007 to 2025. Never a professional player, Mozeliak originally came to the Cardinals in 1995 as then-GM Walt Jocketty's assistant.
Mozeliak's tenure included 10 postseason berths, two National League pennants, and a World Series championship in 2011. He posted a franchise-record 15 consecutive winning seasons from 2008 to 2022, and his 1,521 wins are the most in the NL during that span. During his time, the Cardinals' minor league farm system received numerous accolades following the volume of prospects that succeeded at the major league level, including Baseball America bestowing the franchise with the Organization of the Year Award in 2011 and 2013.
Mozeliak attended Fairview High School in Boulder, Colorado. He played for the school's baseball team as a pitcher and first baseman. He also played American Legion Baseball. Mozeliak attended the University of Arizona, where he was a member of Phi Delta Theta fraternity, before ultimately graduating from the University of Colorado Boulder.
In 1993, Jay Darnell, the Colorado Rockies' video coordinator, introduced Mozeliak to Bryn Smith, pitcher for the Rockies. Smith was looking for a location to go fly fishing. A few days after Mozeliak took Smith fly fishing, the Rockies invited Mozeliak to serve as a batting practice pitcher, since they needed someone who could throw left handed. Dante Bichette took a liking to Mozeliak, and they created a clubhouse job for Mozeliak. He began to work with Bob Gebhard, the Rockies' general manager (GM), and Walt Jocketty, the assistant GM.
When the St. Louis Cardinals hired Jocketty as their GM in 1995, Mozeliak went to St. Louis as well. He served as an assistant within the scouting department and later spent five seasons as Jocketty's assistant GM. He became the assisting scouting director in 1998. The next season, Mozeliak was promoted to scouting director and oversaw the drafting of talent such as Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina. He garnered much attention as a major up-and-coming GM in the industry and interviewed with the Cincinnati Reds and Houston Astros.
On October 3, 2007, chairman of the board of directors William DeWitt Jr. announced that the Cardinals "had cordially and respectfully" parted ways with Jocketty based on philosophical differences of player development. DeWitt named Mozeliak the interim GM. Dating back to the year before, tension arose after Jeff Luhnow, later the Astros' GM, was promoted to vice president of amateur scouting and player development. After more than a decade as GM, Luhnow's promotion tacitly signaled he had usurped that sphere of Jocketty's authority.
While other candidates interviewed for the GM position, it appeared Cleveland Indians assistant GM Chris Antonetti was the early favorite. However, Indians ownership improved Antonetti's offer to take over the full GM position and enticed him to stay. On the evening of October 30, 2007, Mozeliak accepted the Cardinals' offer and the team formally introduced him as the new GM the next day.
One of Mozeliak's first major moves was to trade iconic center fielder Jim Edmonds to the San Diego Padres for minor league third baseman David Freese on December 15, 2007. Although stating regret at first over trading the popular but often-injured Edmonds, Freese later proved to be integral in the Cardinals' 2011 season.