Who will have Cardinals' next retired number?

ST. LOUIS -- The list of Cardinals retired numbers includes 10 players, two managers, one owner and one broadcaster. The only Major League franchise with more retired numbers is the Yankees, who have 20.

Those names and numbers can be seen lining the left-field wall at Busch Stadium, and the numbers appear below the main scoreboard in right-center field. For those who didn’t wear a uniform number but have been deemed deserving, their names and logo appear alongside the others on the list.

Here are the individuals who have had their number, or a logo, retired:

No. 1: Ozzie Smith
No. 2: Red Schoendienst
No. 6: Stan Musial
No. 9: Enos Slaughter
No. 10: Tony La Russa
No. 14: Ken Boyer
No. 17: Dizzy Dean
No. 20: Lou Brock
No. 24: Whitey Herzog
No. 42: Bruce Sutter; Jackie Robinson (league-wide)
No. 45: Bob Gibson
No. 85: August A. Busch
• Rogers Hornsby (STL logo)
• Jack Buck (broadcasting logo).

The Cardinals don’t have a specific guideline or structure for retiring a number, rather they examine careers on a case-by-case basis, and entry to the National Baseball Hall of Fame has been a trend recently. In the end, it’s an ownership decision. Almost all the individuals recognized are in the Hall of Fame, except for Boyer, but a Hall of Fame election isn’t an automatic number retirement for the Cardinals.

• Cardinals' all-time retired numbers

The organization also holds its team Hall of Fame -- which honors the history and players who have provided great moments in franchise history -- in high regard, so a number retirement is the inner circle of Cardinals greats, the highest honor the Cardinals can give an individual.

Using the previous names as a benchmark, here are a few stars who could someday see their numbers added to the left-field wall:

No. 4: Yadier Molina
Molina is set on playing his entire career in a Cardinals uniform, and he will retire as the greatest catcher in franchise history. The 2020 season will mark Molina’s 17th in the Cardinals' organization (2004-20), tying Bob Gibson (17 seasons, 1959-75) for third-most in franchise history. Molina and Gibson trail Jesse Haines (18, 1920-37) and Stan Musial (22, 1941-44, 1946-63).

Molina is a nine-time All-Star, nine-time Gold Glove winner and four-time Platinum Glove winner. He has the fourth-most team shutouts as a starting catcher (155) in the Modern Era, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, behind Yogi Berra (184), Gary Carter (168) and Carlton Fisk (157). Among Cardinals all-time leaders, he ranks fourth in games played (1,983), seventh in hits (1,963), fourth in doubles (379), ninth in RBIs (916) and first in sacrifice flies (70).

The 37-year-old became the steady backstop in one of the most successful eras in Cardinals history. He has two World Series rings and is the Cardinals’ leader on the field and in the clubhouse. It feels like only a matter of time before the Cardinals are discussing when to retire No. 4, and even if Molina doesn’t make the Hall of Fame, he will be a deserved exception to the way the Cardinals have handled number retirements lately.

No. 5: Albert Pujols
Right alongside Molina is Pujols; the only question is who retires first. In 11 years with St. Louis, Pujols hit .328/.420/.617, accumulated an 86.6 bWAR -- third all-time among Cardinals position players -- and won two World Series. To start his career, Pujols had 10 consecutive seasons with a .300 batting average, 30 homers and 100 RBIs. He was the fastest ever to 1,000 hits and 200 home runs, and he was the youngest to reach 250 home runs.

With NL MVP Awards in 2005, ’08 and ’09, Pujols matched Musial’s three MVPs, a franchise high, and Pujols also finished second in voting four times in his first 10 seasons. The likely future Hall of Famer signed a 10-year deal with the Angels in 2012, and he’ll play in Anaheim almost as long as he played in St. Louis. But Pujols’ best years were with the Cardinals, and there’s no doubting the impact he had in St. Louis.

No. 23: Ted Simmons
Elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame this winter, the Cardinals catcher hit .298/.366/.459 with an .824 OPS and was an eight-time All-Star in 13 seasons with St. Louis. He caught two no-hitters -- one by Bob Gibson in '71 and the other by Bob Forsch in '78 -- and finished with a .300 average seven times. Simmons’ 1,389 RBIs rank second all time among catchers, to Yogi Berra’s 1,430. He was also second among catchers in doubles (483) and hits (2,472); only Rodríguez (572 doubles and 2,844 hits) had more. He also ranks seventh among Cardinals hitters with 929 RBIs.

The fact that 18 Cardinals have worn No. 23 since Simmons seems to suggest that there are no plans for its retirement, but that was before he was elected to the Hall of Fame in December. And Simmons’ supporters won’t stop arguing his case, for good reason. If we look at the Cardinals’ all-time leaders in bWAR by position players, we’ll see that Simmons ranks among the greats:

Musial (128.3)
Hornsby (91.4)
Pujols (86.6)
Smith (66.0)
Boyer (58.1)
Slaughter (52.2)
Simmons (45.0)

For the case against Simmons’ number retirement, you can point out that he never won a Gold Glove at a position where defense is key, that he never won a World Series in St. Louis -- or played in a postseason game with the Cardinals -- and that he never placed higher than sixth in the National League MVP race.

Other considerations:
Willie McGee (No. 51) achieved an incredible amount of success with the Cardinals -- a World Series title, an MVP Award, three Gold Gloves and four All-Star appearances -- but fell off the Hall of Fame ballot in 2006. Rookie pitcher Bud Smith was the last to wear No. 51 in 2001, though, and the number returned to the field only when McGee became a coach.

Joe Medwick (No. 7) entered the Hall of Fame in 1968 and was a key part of the 1934 World Series team. The left fielder was an MVP in 1937 and won the Triple Crown that year, too, something no National League player has pulled off since. In 11 years with St. Louis, Medwick hit .335/.372/.545 with 923 RBIs.

Adam Wainwright (No. 50) might not have the resume for Cooperstown, but he has a wealth of postseason experience, four top-three finishes in Cy Young Award voting, three All-Star appearances, three Gold Gloves, two 20-win seasons and a World Series-winning save in 2006. Wainwright will at least land a deserved spot in the Cardinals Hall of Fame when he retires.

The Cardinals also plan to keep No. 57 unofficially retired for Darryl Kile. No player has worn the number since Kile, who died in 2002.