Continuing to bolster a player development system that will be the organization’s focus in 2025 and what they hope will be their lifeblood for years to come, the Cardinals announced the hirings of several key figures to their Minor League staff on Wednesday.

Larry Day, who worked previously for the Guardians, was hired to be the club’s new director of player development, while former Mariners pitching coach/pitching coordinator Matt Pierpont was named as the Cardinals' director of pitching. Additionally, Carl Kochan was named the team’s director of performance, a new position that president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said in November would be coming for the club.

The appointments are the first made by Rob Cerfolio, who was hired by the Cardinals on Oct. 22 to be their assistant general manager in charge of player development and performance. Team advisor Chaim Bloom, who will be taking over for Mozeliak in 2026 as president of baseball operations, has spearheaded the club’s recommitment to enhancing its player development system at the Minor League levels.

After missing the playoffs the past two seasons, the Cardinals announced in October that they would be undergoing a “reset” that would shift the focus to player development and creating more opportunities for the big league club’s young core. The Cardinals also made it clear that they would be looking to trim their payroll for 2025 and have openly shopped for trades of their most established veteran players.

Day, 39, takes over for Gary LaRocque, who announced his retirement in September following a 16-year run as the Cardinals' farm director. Day worked with Cerfolio in Cleveland, and he was previously the assistant field coordinator for the Guardians. He managed Guardians Minor League organizations for three seasons from 2017-19.

Kochan comes to the Cardinals following a six-year stint with the Dodgers as the Minor League strength and conditioning coordinator. He also worked for the Giants as their Major League strength and conditioning coach from 2012-18 and was named MLB’s Strength Coach of the Year in 2016.

Pierpont served as the Mariners' pitching coach in 2022 and worked as their assistant pitching coordinator (2023) and pitching coordinator (2024) the past two seasons. In an emotional post on X, Pierpont thanked the Mariners for his time spent with that club, writing: “There are no words to describe how special these past four years have been. It was an honor to be a part of this organization and work alongside such incredible people. Excited for the next chapter with the Cardinals.”