Cardinals' Franchise Legend Will Be Present for Opening Day

A former great will be with the team for Opening Day.

Aug 9, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; A general view of Busch Stadium during the second inning of a game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals are set to begin yet another season in their franchise history. The expectations may be different this year, but it doesn't take away from all the great moments that have occurred in franchise history.

In fact, the Cardinals even brought back a franchise legend this past offseason, hiring 10-time All-Star and two-time World Series champion Yadier Molina as a special advisor to Chaim Bloom. Molina was a fan-favorite during his time in St. Louis and contributed to some great teams.

According to Jeff Jones of the Belleville News Democrat, the Cardinals and their fans will be seeing Molina pretty early this season.

"Expectation is that when the Cardinals break camp and head north, Yadier Molina will remain with the team for the first homestand. Should be in uniform for opening day," Jones posted on X.

Molina heading north with Cardinals

Feb 16, 2026; Jupiter, FL, USA; St. Louis Cardinals great Yadier Molina (left) talks with catcher Pedro Pages (43) during spring training workouts at Roger Dean Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images | Reinhold Matay-Imagn Images

Molina won nine Gold Gloves, four Platinum Gloves, a Silver Slugger award and a Clemente award in addition to his 10 All-Star appearnaces and two World Series titles. He had more than his fair share of great moments in a Cardinals' uniform.

The Cardinals are celebrating the 20th anniversary of their 2006 World Series championship team, and Molina hit a clutch home run in Game 7 of the NLCS to get the Cardinals past the New York Mets and into the Fall Classic.

Molina played his entire 19-year career in St. Louis and is even on the ballot for the Cardinals' Hall of Fame this season. He hit .277/.327/.399 with 176 home runs, 1,022 RBI, a .726 OPS and a 41.6 WAR. He also picked up a total of 2,168 hits during his big-league career.

Despite being retired from playing, Molina's voice is still a valuable one to have around. He can guide the Cardinals' young pitchers and catchers and help the team with their gameplan for each opponent.

He is also a veteran of the game that players can lean on for guidance as they look to take the next steps in their careers. Despite the Cardinals' rebuild, Molina's presence will be a welcome one, and fans will certainly be excited to see Molina in uniform on Opening Day as the Cardinals kick off yet another season.

It will be interesting to see how Molina impacts the club this year, but his work does include coaching on the Major League staff, so fans can expect to see him at various points this year.