Struggling to break out in the National League Central this season, the St. Louis Cardinals fired manager Mike Matheny on Saturday.

The Cardinals announced bench coach Mike Shildt will serve as interim manager following Matheny's dismissal after their 8-2 loss against the Cincinnati Reds:

Saturday's loss dropped the Cardinals record to 47-46, seven games behind the Chicago Cubs in the division race and four games out of a wild-card spot.

Matheny has been the manager in St. Louis since Nov. 14, 2011. He was hired to take over the team after Tony La Russa retired following the Cardinals' World Series victory over the Texas Rangers.

The 47-year-old Matheny played 13 seasons in MLB from 1994-2006 with four different organizations. He spent five seasons playing with the Cardinals, appearing in 622 games from 2000-04 and winning three of his four Gold Glove awards.

In seven seasons managing the Cardinals, Matheny went 591-474 with a playoff appearance in each of his first four years. Their 83 wins last season were their fewest since going 78-84 in 2007.