Padres' Mike Shildt Blasted by Ex-Cardinals Star in Brutal Rant After Sudden Exit

Apr 20, 2024; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego Padres manager Mike Shildt (8) yells at crew chief Adrian Johnson (right) after being ejected during the first inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-Imagn Images | Orlando Ramirez-Imagn Images

San Diego Padres manager Mike Shildt surprisingly announced his retirement earlier this month, and former St. Louis Cardinals slugger Matt Holliday sounded off on the now-former skipper.

Shildt has deep ties to the Cardinals organization, first working as a scout for St. Louis in 2004. He stayed with the organization as a minor league coach and, eventually, manager, through 2016.

Holliday, a seven-time All-Star and World Series champion with the Cardinals, had some harsh words for Shildt via the Serving it Up Podcast.

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Matt Holliday shares his thoughts on the Mike Shildt situation #STLCards

📺 Watch the full ep of Serving It Up: https://t.co/tIfBWlKufi pic.twitter.com/MDJinFocwM

— STL Sports Central (@STLSprtsCntrl) October 16, 2025

"When you don't treat people right, when you don't treat people like peers, you may be the manager, but there's four or five coaches on that staff that played in the Major Leagues for a long time, and you should treat them as peers, as your staff," Holiday said. "You've hired them to do a job, and then if you micromanage everything they do, that doesn't set up for a very good work environment. And that creates a weird continuity amongst the staff that the players feel.

"There's qualities in him of how much he loves baseball and how much he wears it and takes it home with him and he's into every pitch that if harnessed, and if used in the right way, I think can be awesome," Holiday continued. "But I think sometimes it can be over the top, and I think that sometimes he rubs staff and players and front office in a way that ultimately ends up where we're at."

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In 2017, Shildt was promoted to the Major Leagues as a quality control coach for the Cardinals. He rose the ranks that season, becoming the third base coach, and was the bench coach by 2018. After Mike Matheny was fired that July, Shildt took on managerial duties and became just the second MLB manager without any professional playing experience.

Shildt was the Cardinals' skipper until 2021, getting St. Louis to the NLCS in 2019, the Wild Card round in 2020, and the Wild Card game in 2021. It was announced that Shildt would not be asked back in 2022 due to "philosophical differences," according to Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak.

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