New Cardinals Hall of Famer has shaped careers of many, including Redbirds manager

José Oquendo relayed on Saturday afternoon that when he was looking to establish himself in the Major Leagues, it was a necessity for him to learn to play every position. The Cardinals of the late 1980s were loaded with stars around the diamond, and for Oquendo, the best way to the field was being able to fill in when each and every player needed a day off.

The flexibility is what made him, the player, The Secret Weapon. The secret is out when it comes to coaching, and this weekend, he takes his place among the foundational leaders and instructors that have echoed down through the decades all the way through 21-year-old Masyn Winn, who described Oquendo as “like Yoda” before his Major League debut.

Oquendo was inducted into the Cardinals Hall of Fame on Sunday alongside the late Max Lanier, a left-handed starter who pitched in the 1930s, 40s and 50s and was selected by the Red Ribbon Committee. The winner of the fan vote, David Freese, declined induction.

Fittingly, Oquendo was an organizational selection, an honor that befits his stature and essential importance. He gave credit to the influences of George Kissell, Dave Ricketts and Red Schoendienst, and while he might quibble, his stature now is certainly in equal to theirs.

“I feel honored and proud,” Oquendo said Saturday. “It’s been a long time. I’m happy for getting in, for the organization to vote me in, and I’m excited about it.”

He added, “I’m proud to be part of the group that was in the past…All those teachers are great, because it’s all teaching from the past, and now I’m just passing the baton.”

Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol draws his own path through the organization in a straight line from Oquendo and what was imparted on him over countless long days spent in the Florida sun. In his years first as a minor league manager and then a part of the Major League staff, Marmol would spend winters at the team’s Florida complex with Oquendo, all day, every day except Sunday.

Some days they would hit ground balls or do other work with players who were at the complex. Some days, they would simply sit and talk about baseball, life, and everything in between. They would draw up scenarios and hypotheticals, debate them out, argue about the right way forward.

Most days, Oquendo would convince his younger charge. On the rare days when Marmol would score a few points and think that he’d made some progress with the man everyone calls “Cheo,” Oquendo would return the next day having cooked up a rebuttal, challenging his process even further.

“He’s one of the guys who has shaped my career,” Marmol said. “From the very beginning, he’s been very deliberate and intentional in how he’s done that, and I owe a lot to him.”

Part of the knowledge Oquendo poured in covered communication and getting through to players. As first one of the youngest coaches and now the youngest manager in the Major Leagues, and without having played in the big leagues himself, Marmol knew he would need to take pains to make sure he could effectively and credibly deliver a message to players at all levels, some of whom may be less receptive than others.

The advice was the same technique that Oquendo himself has used with countless players throughout the system over the years – honesty, sometimes even on the edge of bluntness, brings credibility. If a player doesn’t like what they’re about to hear, they can at least trust that it’s coming from a place of sincerity.

“He’s very direct,” Marmol said. “At the end of the day, he just wants the organization to be at its best.”

That message came through to Alec Burleson in frank discussions early in his minor league career about his body composition and fitness. It came through to Winn, who nearly made a seemingly impossible diving stop and throw on Friday that he nonetheless said he expected to make.

Oquendo expected the same. To be a successful big leaguer, he said, requires that level of expectation. If it’s possible, a player has to assume they can do it. It’s support shaped into expectations.

“I for sure would not be where I’m at without Cheo,” Winn said. “I would have to give all the credit to him. I work with him as much as I can in spring training, and I really tried to take advantage.”

Schoendienst was born in 1923 and made his own debut in 1945. Winn, born 79 years later, has two days in the majors. Oquendo is the thread that connects them and branches out to countless others, and he has no intention of slowing down.

“As long as they want me and need me,” the 60-year-old Oquendo said with a laugh when asked how long he planned to continue coaching. “I live in Florida, the camp’s in Florida, I’m almost at home. I spend a lot of time at home. If they want me to do it for a little longer, I’d like to do it.”

Each of Kissell, Ricketts and Schoendienst were imprinting on the club through the end of their lives. Oquendo, firmly entrenched among that group, will doubtless have every bit as long as he likes.

This story was originally published August 20, 2023 at 12:41 PM.