A transcript of Cardinal general manager John Mozeliak's media session today in St. Louis"

Opening statement:

Obviously you're all aware of the events of the day. When you engage in a process like this, no matter how it ends you always have a disappointing feeling. We think back at our time with Albert Pujols, being part of our draft, someone who comes up through our system, and then produces to the level of greatness that he did, you really form a bond with the player. It's more than just a player-front office relationship, it's a friendship. He was really such an integral part of this community and this organization. It's a disappointing day, but it's a day that we knew was a possibility and as we sit here now, we're going to refocus our energy and look at different ways we can deploy our resources and make sure that 2012 is exciting and fun to watch and that we put an exciting product out there that our fans are accustomed to seeing.

Questions? We'll go from there.

Was there a point where you knew it wasn't going your way?

Not really. It was a very fluid situation, one where there was a lot of give and take, ups and downs, yesterday I'd say was the most dramatic day of all in terms of really focusing in on the negotiations. I was notified this morning and that's when I knew it was directionally going the wrong way.

Did you know the offer you were up against from the Angels?

No. We had no idea. When we look at this process, it wasn't about what the market was doing as what we could do. Everybody that was really close to this process knew we were stretching and putting ourselves in a situation that was becoming a little uncomfortable, but that one we were trying to do what we thought was worth it.

So the Pujols camp never came to you and said, we've got this offer ...

They never put us in a position to do that which I think shows a lot about Albert and his representation. They never pinned us like that.

Do you feel better to know you didn't get beat by a dollar?

Absolutely. When I heard that number I said, Wow. It's big.

What was the difference?

I have no idea. I did speak with Albert earlier. We didn't get into contracts or terms, it was simply about wishing well and reflecting back on his time here. It was a very pleasant conversation and one that I think we both felt good about it.

Did you leave yourself exposed to this kind of offer by not bringing an offer earlier?

Apparently. Obviously if we were able to make a deal earlier, we would have had no exposure. Once you go to the open market, things happen, as to why we didn't get a deal done whether it was last year or in previous years, you'd have to his representation, but I imagine this is exactly what they wanted to see happen eventually.

We had discussions in terms of understanding in a framework what something might look like if we were to get something done. But really our first engagement in terms of putting an offer on the table was last January.

What did Albert say?

He was very gracious, as you would expect. He's a professional, he knows what to act, he knows what to say. Again, we've known each other a long time so it was an easy conversation in that regard.

What's the sense of loss for the franchise?

I think that's hard to tell right now. The big thing when you look at it is the word franchise. That's the most important part of all this. It's maintaining a winning tradition that is steeped with a great history. I don't think any time you put one man ahead of that, I think that's when things start to go wrong. So for us, it's about looking at ways to win, make sure this brand is growing and our fan base is enjoying the product we're putting out there. There's no doubt when you lose an individual talent, that makes for a difficult day, but in the end it's going to come down to how we play on these out years. Ownership, myself, that's what we're responsible for doing.

What happens to the Pujols brand?

I don't know. I don't think I can speak to that. When you look at individual players and what it does for them, I think it will be determined on how things go for him when he gets out to L.A.

He had a chance to Ripken, Gwynn ...

Musial. You're right and I think from that regard it's no longer there.

How were the talks?

Very professional. These kind of talks there's always ups and downs, as you could imagine something of this length, these dollars, things get tense, but it was still very professional.

Did it ultimately just come down to dollars?

I don't know. I'm not going to speak for anyone. That's not for me to say.

You felt you had extended yourself as far as you could go?

Absolutely. And beyond.

How much has this held you back on other things?

It's obviously created a situation where we weren't pursuing other options. I assure you we have our irons in the fire now and as things get into next week, we'll be active and I think we have a pretty good idea of what we want to see happen now.

What does it mean not to have $200 million-plus on the books? Is this a chance to chart a new direction?

It really is. I was looking at it on the airplane and I was, like, wow, it does create some flexibility for the organization. We knew that was a possibility and that's what we'll try to do, deploy those resources.

How did you project the numbers out on Pujols? Did you bend statistical analysis in favor of we like him?

It's hard to quantify iconic value or superstar value. We tried. When you think about the 11 years he had here as a player that's what we were trying to encompass and keep growing. We were hopeful it would be something that at the end of this contract he'd be a Cardinal for life and there'd be a happy ending. But there were certainly some risks when you talk about those type of years.

What is Albert's legacy with the Cardinals?

I think his 11 years here will always be known as historic. Everyone of us who the ability and opportunity to watch it should all be grateful. I don't think today is a day to reflect in any negative way because so many great things happened in his time here. It's over, but the fact that we had two World Series champions and played in a third, that's a great run and he was most certainly a key member of that.

The last offer wasn't all that different from earlier ones. Did you think that was going to work?

I guess so because we tried. In all seriousness, this situation was extremely fluid. There were a lot of things going back and forth at a rather quick pace too yesterday. In terms of looking at change, or how substantially were they different, there were significant subtleties that were baked into this was where we thought we were pushing ourselves into position that maybe we couldn't be. We went ahead and tried and it didn't work out.

Not get into terms or dollars. There was a lot going on. I assure you it was a robust offer.

How often did you talk to Albert in the process?

Not very often. Of late, in last 72 hours, did talk a couple times, not about things you might think about, it wasn't necessarily negotiations, it was talking through where this may go and where it was headed. Very professional, very honest and very thoughtful. In the end, ultimately it comes down to someone has to make a decision.

What will you tell yourself about his decision?

I think he looks at this as a new opportunity, a new challenge, and one that he felt was in his best interests. You have to honor that.

More urgency to get a bat soon with Craig hurt?

I don't think so. Clearly we want to address our roster, clearly we want to improve, clearly we're willing to make some adjustments. I don't think just because of what happened today we need to make a knee jerk reaction jut to sign somebody to sign somebody. We have to make sure it makes sense and understand that Allen Craig is only going to be out a month or two at most so we don't want to put a blocker in where he can't get his at-bats. But at the same time, we want to be competitive because we are the reigning world champs.

Address needs through free agency or trades?

My preference would be through free agency if we could because I think our farm system is in such great shape. It's strong, I'd hate to really deplete that, but we will explore some trade opportunities between now and February.

With the money freed up how far can you extend yourself in free agency?

We always had opportunities to do somethings, now, we don't have a ton of holes to fill, when focus on what we want to do with these resources, I feel very comfortable we can accomplish that.

Heard feedback from teammates?

Had a couple players reach out, they were very supportive of the organization, where we're going and what we need to do.

Did you talk to Berkman about moving to first?

I have.

Thumbs up?

He'll do whatever we ask.

Who do you think is the face of the organization and where do you fit in as far as being the face?

I hope not. That would be a shame. I think obviously when you have an iconic player like Albert there's no one that's going to step into that today. But that does mean there's an opportunity for someone to do that. I don't think a club has to have that to be successful. I think time will tell.

Any regrets about the process?

No, I think we did everything we could. Bill DeWitt and I worked some exhausting hours on this one to try to get this over the goal line and the effort that was put in was extraordinary. Unfortunately it didn't work out. But no regrets.

Can this be a blessing in disguise to not have to pay Albert Pujols into his 40s?

Obviously, we mitigated a lot of risk when we were told no. So in that regard, it gives us some resources to try other things

What about Jeff Luhnow?

I'm happy for him. Anybody that can go on to bigger and better things, it's wonderful for this organization. It's a compliment to Bill who brought him in and from a baseball operations side it says a lot that, people notice what we're doing here and giving him that opportunity to go down to Houston, I feel good for him and I'm proud of that. And I'm glad they're moving to the AL West.

When did the negotiations resume after the season?

In earnest at the GM-owner meetings back in Milwaukee.

Was there any thought to taking advantage of the exclusive window you had with Pujols?

Of how long?

Four days.

Right. And what were we doing?

Hiring a manager.

Right. We couldn't fit it in. I think someone that waited 11 years to get to free agency was not going to rethink the four days.

Did you have a plan in place for if Pujols leaves?

You always have contingencies. Obviously it's a little difficult to try to say how you're going to replace someone like Albert. That's not easily done. I think to try to grab a handful of players and make it an aggregate is a difficult task as well. The best way to do it is understand the resources that have been freed up and how you're going to utilize those.

The Cavs fell apart after LeBron James left, Manning gets hurt and the Colts don't win a game. For fans thinking the worst-case scenario, why is it different when you lose a superstar like this in the middle of your lineup?

The only thing I can think of to compare it to is Adam Wainwright going down in the middle of February. Most people in the media thought we were going to have a very long year. Fortunately, things worked out, other players stepped up and it ended up being a very successful year for us. Obviously it's easy to say this is going to be a difficult hit to this organization but I think before we pass judgment, let's allow us to play a game.

How would signing Albert have affected your payroll?

My answer hasn't changed, it's something we baked in should we sign him and in terms of what we do now moving forward, it's not a very dramatic change at all.

So we shouldn't expect you to spend $21 million on free agents now?

Well, if we can find $21 million worth of talent we would consider it, but it's all going to be on what we're purchasing on how we're getting it.