DOWNTOWN — To hear Cardinals president Mark Lamping describe it, John Mozeliak stepped out of Walt Jocketty’s shadow the day after Jocketty was fired. That was in action. In word, Mozeliak spread his wings Tuesday during a staff meeting at Busch Stadium.

It was there that, according to Lamping, Mozeliak told staff members that any of the barriers, any of the burned bridges or hurt feelings or bruised relationships that had developed during the previous baseball operations administration were in the past. An inclusive era is upon the Cardinals, the officials say.

And so ends an odd and isolating structure that had developed in the front office.

As illustrated somewhat in today’s paper, Mozeliak’s organizational flow  chart is far different than the one Jocketty had even five years ago. The changes chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. made to the front office by employing and then promoting Jeff Luhnow had  unexpected fallout — an entire  department was walled-in with no official connection to the general manager. Luhnow’s group, Lamping said, would often report to DeWitt, who would then pool information from other departments and pass it on to Jocketty. Instead of all roads leading the general manager, several tour wild detours through the upper levels of management.

Mozeliak was hired with the expectation all roads will lead him. As of today.

“It was not a process that Bill set up, but it was a process that was thrust upon him because there was a vacuum,” Lamping said. “That was the real issue the past several years.  … We’re assuming that Mo will actively manage and lead the entire department and be inclusive in terms of all the decision-making. And Bill can go back to what he enjoys doing, which is being the general  partner and the chairman of the board and not the pseudo-general manager at times.”

Lamping said that after the press conference to announce Mozeliak as the 12th general manager in St. Louis Cardinals history. Here is the unabridged transcript of the press conference held Wednesday at Busch Stadium (with some phrases bolded to stand out, and because it was requested in the past the questioners identified when they are P-D staffers):

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OPENING STATEMENTS

Chairman BILL DeWITT JR: Thank you all for coming today. Earlier this month we named our assistant general manager John Mozeliak our interim GM as we began a thorough search to identify the person who would be our next general manager. Four weeks later I am proud to introduce to who becomes the 12^th person in club history to serve the St. Louis Cardinals as general manager. He is John Mozeliak.

Mo has been instrumental in our success this decade which has featured six trips to the postseason, a national league pennant and a world championship last season. He brings a great deal of strength to all areas of our baseball operations, amateur and pro scouting, player development, drafting, negotiations, player acquisitions and the day-to-day management of a major-league ballclub. Mo is also a terrific communicator, with excellent relationships within our organization and throughout the game, from scouts to agents to his fellow GMs in both leagues.

As everyone knows because of his outstanding reputation, Mo has been a candidate for GM positions elsewhere. Mo’s performance as our interim general manager this past month was extremely impressive in every way. already he has the support and respect of our entire organization. John Mozeliak has earned the opportunity and we’re proud that he will remain a member of the Cardinals family.

I’d like to introduce to you the new general manager of the st. louis cardinals, John Mozeliak.

JOHN MOZELIAK: Thank you. Obviously this is a very special day for me personally. But I don’t necessarily want it to be truly focused on me. It’s really about this organization and the tremendous history and pleasure I have in being part of it. When I first was told about this, the first thing that came to mind was I wanted to thank Bill DeWitt, Mark Lamping, the entire ownership group as well as the St. Louis Cardinals organization. This is a challenge that I’ve worked a long time for. I’m extremely excited and honored to take this over.

When you look at this opportunity, I also see an obligation. When you look at the obligation, it’s the history of this organization. It’s about putting a winner out there at all levels. It’s about competing at the minor-league level as well as the major-league level. When you think about that, there’s a huge responsibility that goes with that. And I can assure you that we as an orgaization will live up to that.

To everyone in the Cardinal family, I want them to know we are committed to winning. With Bill DeWitt behind that and his philosophy blends with trying to create a successful environment that will allow us to compete. Everyone knows that the landscape is changing at the major-league level. And we have to adapt. As we move forward we are prepared to do so.

I want to let everybody know that the GM meetings begin this weekend, but our staff and everybody involved has already begun working. We’re looking forward to 2008.

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QUESTION AND  ANSWER SESSION

Q: John, how did you feel when you learned that you were going to be the general manager of the St. Louis Cardinals?

JM: Obviously I was extremely proud and honored. When I got the call from Mr. DeWitt. It’s something that when you grow up in the game of baseball, you don’t necessarily dream about becoming the general manager. But as you work in the game you start to have aspirations of higher levels. I think not too long ago I realized that it was a possibility in my future. I really welcome this opportunity and I look forward to the challenge.

Q: Bill, when and how did you decide this was the right move? When and why?

BD: We completed the process just a day or so ago. Yesterday I called Mo if he would be the new GM of the Cardinals. That was the first call at the end of the process. We worked it out. Happy to have him aboard.

Bernie Miklasz: John, much has been made of the organizational divide, some of the dissension in the organization. How do you plan to approach it in terms of bridging that divide, specifically with Jeff Luhnow?

JM: Well, I think a lot of that has been overstated. I will say this that my working relationshup with Jeff is outstanding. As we look to move forward obviously what he’s done to this point has allowed us to better make decisions as we move forward. It would actually be ludicrous to ignore that. When you look at the St. Louis Cardinals looking forward I will put a lot of emphasis on what happens there. I am really looking forward to working with his group, and quite honestly the analytical department will now report directly to the general manager. I think as a whole, the environment will be one that encourages open thinking but will allow for us to better prepare when we hit the free agent market and trade decisions.

Q: Bill to what extent was finding someone who would make everything work smoothly, work together a priority in this decision?

BD: It was a priority. But I must say we had some wonderful candidates and there was no issue with any of them with respect to our organization. In fact, quite the contrary. They were extremely complimentary of the work that had been done. When they got exposed to it first hand, they were very impressed.

Q: Mo, as a protégé of (Walt Jocketty), can you tell us if there are differences in your approach and philosophy as a general manager compared to him?

JM: Certainly. Obviously, my 12 years here with the Cardinals I’ve worked with Walt very closely. But I think moving forward and thinking ahead, I will be my own man. I think the way I look at some of our methodologies and some fo the thinigs we do here in St. Louis will be a completely different approach. Ultimately our goal here is to be a successful team from bottom to top. Ultimately that will come under my leadership and we as a group want to get to that level.

Q: Bill, what input did (Tony La Russa’s) opinion about Mo and his qualities have on this decision?

BD: Tony was very supportive. I stayed in touch with him regularly on the various candidates. Spoke with him again last night. He was very excited and supportive and looked forward to working with Mo and the group going forward.

Q: Mo, knowing Bill was interviewing candidates elsewhere how realistic did you think your chances were throughout this whole process?

JM: Well I always thought I had a very fair opportunity to get this position. Quite honestly, I’m glad they went through the process of interviewing these people. Because at the end of the day, getting it, I have a lot more pride with that.

Q: A lot has been said about building up the farm system and making sure that quality is there from the bottom to the top. Does that mean there will be a difference when it comes to the approach to free agency and making trades? In other words, will you not dive as deeply into it as in the past?

JM: I think to get to that level, you have to have that pipeline as far as putting playeres at the major-league level. In the short term, we still will have to look at the major-league free agent market or potential trades to fill some of our needs. But as we look at this model moving forward our hope that we can supply a majority if not all of our roster through our system.

Q: Mo, what did it mean to you to have Tony’s support?

JM: Well my relationship with Tony has been very strong over the years.  Obviously he’s a Hall of Fame manager and one that I respect a lot. Knowing that he felt comfortable with me being the next general manager, made me feel very good about this. I would have been very hesitant had he not.

Q: Mo, you did an awful lot as an assistant general manager, do you already have an idea of a staff that you would like put together? Are they in-house? Or are you going to look outside?

JM: As far the assistant GM position, I think we’ll open it up and do a thorough search there. Our core group with Jeff, John Vuch, and someone you guys are not that familiar with Mike Girsch is really the three guys that I have leaning fairly heavy on the last few weeks. Quite honestly, it’s been working smoothly and I think those three guys will put us in a great position to make good decisions.

Joe Strauss: Hey, Mo, are guys like Jerry Walker and (Mike Jorgensen), are these guys you expect to be part of your support staff or do you expect turnover there?

JM: Specifically on Jerry Walker and Mike Jorgensen, I expect them both to be back. Clearly it’s up to them, what they want to do. But I haven’t really had any formal discussions with them at this point.

Q: How long is the contract?

JM: Three years.

Q: We know that in the past you have helped negotiate some of the contracts and helped facilitate some of the moves with this team. As you look back to the ones you’ve done to this point - just to give people out there your thinking - what would you say is the biggest moves you’ve made, the one you’ve really felt good that it was somebody you accomplished to bring in?

JM: Well, starting from the amateur side it would be Albert Pujols. Starting at the major-league level, I think David Eckstein was a very solid deal. I think Mark Grudzielanek was one that was well below market. Even looking just at this year, look at Ryan Franklin. I’ve been a part of much bigger deals, but when you’re looking at just pure return on investment I think all of those were very positive.

Bernie Miklasz: Mark, just to clarify some of the media reports, nationally or wherever, was John the only person this job was offered to?

MARK LAMPING: The job was offered to one person. It was offered Tuesday afternoon - to Mo. He accepted the job. As Bill referenced, it was a great pool of finalists for this job. Some of the speculation on who the finalists were for the job was correct. It wasn’t 100-percent correct, but it was very close. All of those finalists were outstanding. I’m convinced, and I think Bill shares this, each of those finalists will become a GM at some point. I don’t think it’s fair at this point to get into who was in second, who was in third, who was in fourth because I think it’s unfair to those finalists.

Rick Hummel: Say Mo what is the status of Eckstein’s signability at this point? Your interest in him?

JM: I think right now, he obviously filed for free agency. We’re still trying to assess the market on what’s out there in terms of how we can fill that position. But we do have a dialogue going with David and his agent, but something substantial or imminent at this time.

Joe Strauss: When you characterized some of the deals that you’ve done before, you characterized them just now as below-market deals. Is that still a prerequisite for you now and to what extent do you realize now that you’re going to have ot pay market or even above perhaps to get what you need this winter?

JM: I answered that question because I thought they were very successful deals. I was also part of the Scott Rolen deal which was definitely at or above market. So, when you look at what the band of deals I’ve been a part of or the Cardinals have been a part of I think we touch “em all. Understanding this free agent market, we have to be prepared to up the ante if we want to be a part of those deals this year.

Q: Mo, have you heard from Walt at all? It’s a little weird. He left under not the greatest circumstances, he’s you’re mentor and now here you are replacing him. Is it a weird emotion for him as well as you?

JM: I think you’d have to ask him there. As far as me, No. I’m excited about this opportunity and when you really look at what I’ve done at the Cardinals, this has been 12 years. You can ask my wife. It’s been a lot of hard work and long hours. When you get to the point and you feel you’re ready for the job - which I did - I was nothing but excited and honored for it.

Q: On a personal level did you have the feeling, I don’t want to be a runnerup again? How important was it for you personally to break through and get this chance?

JM: It meant a lot. These jobs are hard to get. There are only 30 of them. I wanted to be very realistic and somewhat manage my own expectations in this process. Deep down, this is what I always wanted and it’s very exciting to be a part of it.

Q: Just the fact that you’ll be sticking around here, for various reasons — I imagine the possibility of being somewhere else came up a few times recently — how big of a deal is it for you to stay where you built something?

JM: Being a part of the St. Louis Cardinals organization means a lot. Even early on in this process, when I met with Mark and Bill early, I wanted them to know that regardless of the outcome I still wanted to be a part of the St. Louis Cardinals. My wife and I love calling St. Louis our home, hopefully I’m here for a long time.

Joe Strauss: Mo, how do you think the job that you have is going to be different than the job Walt had, in terms of how it’s done and what your sphere of influence is?

JM: I really think the biggest difference is going to be how we make decisions. How we get there. And looking at the process. Is really the biggest change. My responsibility is very much the same as Walt’s in terms of overseeing the baseball operations department. But when you look at the biggest difference, it’s going to be the process.

Joe Strauss: Can you go into that at all?

JM: I just think when you look how we’re going to make decisions, we will have input from a variety of areas. That would be the analytical department. That would be the scouting department. That would be our major-league staff, medical staff. Picture somewhat of a matrix if you will to get some end result. We will eventually let that evolve.

Q: Are there changes in staffing or personnel that you’re looking to make in the short term, be they in the minor-league field staff, or in the scouting, any additional bodies?

JM: Personally, I do not. We have a lot of openings in our minor-league department and I think we have three openings in our amateur scouting department. I think Jeff can answer that best. His group is looking to recruit right now and fill those spots as soon as possible. It is an ongoing process.

Q: In terms of numbers, are there areas you’re looking to beef-up to strengthen?

JM: I think right now we are looking to do a little bit more on the international, but as far as anything that deviates from what we’ve done in the past, not much, no.

Q: Bill, you know what Mo brought to the table a month ago, but by interviewing other candidates could you measure an in-house candidate, as opposed to the other candidates? Was that part of the process? Was it measuring him somewhat against other candidates?

BD: Yeah, it was healthy to try and pick who were the best candidates. We started with a big group and then checked around and sort of narrowed it to a smaller group of the top potential candidates, which of course included Mo. Until you get through all of those you don’t want to predetermine your decision. We waited until we went through the whole process of discussion, research and so forth until we made a final decision. I think that was the perfect way to do it.

ML: Let me add something to that if I can. Mo was the first candidate. He was the candidate that was given the opportunity to operate the last 30 days. I can tell you I was extremely impressed with what Mo got done this last month. We didn’t miss a step. We took a step forward. I was very impressed by his performance the last 30 days. Mo may not have had a formal interview, but he certianly had the longest interview of anyone in the candidate pool that’s for sure.

Derrick Goold: Mark, can you elaborate on that? We can all see the public signings and extensions, but were there things done in the front office that Mo was a part of as far as “integrating” some of these things or changing the way the front office worked?

ML: Mo stepped right in and acknowledged that he had to take charge. He opened up the lines of communication immediately. We met with all of our employees at 2:30 today. Bill made the announcement on Mo.

I thought it was great because it’s an internal promotion, and that tells you something about your organization if you can promote from within. I think that’s a positive comment on the strength of the entire organization.

The first thing Mo said to all of the employees was if there have been barriers that have been built up over the years between the baseball operations department and the rest of the organization they’re coming down today. That takes leadership, to step into a job with about a negative-half hour of tenure and to make a statement like that. That wasn’t the first time Mo stepped up. Sometimes you don’t really know how strong of a leader somebody is going to be until they’re given that leadership opportunity. I don’t know if Mo viewed it as a pre-empetive oportunity, but he certainly took advantage of it. I observed it and I was very impressed.

BD: I’ll add to that. The energy in the baseball operations department is unlike what we’ve had here for a long, long time. Everyone knows that their opinion is valued. There is no tension. It is a completely open forum within in that group. You can see the enthusiasm and excitement in the days ahead. It’s just refreshing to see. I’ll second what Mark said. The leadership that Mo has shown to include everyone and respect everyone’s opinion has been dramatic.

Joe Strauss: Mo,  a lot of times you’ve used the term “blindsided’ for something if it’s not pleasant and it happens, were you in this ccase apparently a pleasant thing, blindside by the offer here? Or were you half expecting it to come?

JM: You’re asking me to handicap it. I’ll put it at over 51 percent in terms of did I think I’d get the chance. As both Mark and Bill said, it was 30 days of getting the opportunity to do this. As they got to watch the process and as I was learning the process, I think we all felt very comfortable where this might end. I would not use the word blindsided.

Q: Mo, what’s the biggest thing you learned from Jocketty, and do you consider him a mentor?

JM: The biggest thing I learned from Walt - he was a very patient man. And I do admire that. I do think that he and I very different people. Hopefully in the next few years you’ll see why.

Q: You’re not as patient as he is?

JM: No. Probably not.

Q: What was this last few weeks … Professionally, there were some odd situations you were in … What has this last four weeks have been like to sort of personally navigate your way through all this?

JM: It was an exciting time. There were obviously some ups and downs and how you would feel. You didn’t know the outcome. If anyone would be a part of that, they would feel the same way. But, Mark and Bill kept me in the loop just enough to know what was happening. I really appreciated the feedback that I would get. I never let it effect my day to day.

Ultimately I think that is why we were able to do what we did.

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