Cardinals president not happy with Fowler's effort, energy levels

St. Louis Cardinals president of baseball operation John Mozeliak isn't pleased with the campaign Dexter Fowler is putting forward this season and won't defend the outfielder's effort, either.

During his weekly "Mondays with Mo" interview sitdown with Dan McLaughlin, Mozeliak explained Fowler is not playing at the level the Cardinals hoped for when they inked him to a five-year, $82.5-million contract before the 2017 season and also touched on the effort being put forward by the one-time All-Star.

"It’s been a frustrating year for everybody involved. Here’s a guy who wants to go out and play well. I think he would tell you it’s hard to do that when you’re not playing on a consistent basis. But I’ve also had a lot of people come up to me and question his effort and his energy level. You know, those are things that I can’t defend," Mozeliak said.

"What I can defend is trying to create opportunities for him, but not if it’s at the expense of someone who’s out there hustling and playing hard. And really I think everyone just needs to take a hard look in the mirror, and decide what they want that next chapter to look like.

And in Dexter’s case, maybe taking a brief time out, trying to reassess himself, and then give him a chance for a strong second half is probably what’s best for everybody. I’m hopeful to touch base with him in the near future and decide what makes the most sense, but clearly he’s not playing at the level we had hoped," the executive added.

Fowler, who is on paternity leave while spending time with his wife following the birth of their second child, is mired in the worst season of his career.

The 32-year-old is hitting just .171/.276/.278 with eight doubles and 20 RBIs in 66 games. His .554 OPS is also a career low.