The plan in December 2016 was for a situation just like this: A Cardinals pivotal series in, say, 2019, and who's in center vs. the Cubs but the reliable vet Dexter Fowler, earning his big bucks against his former club.
Everything is playing out just as planned, except for a just few minor detours along the way: injuries; the rise of Tommy Pham; the move to right field; the worst statistical 2018 Fowler could imagine; the rise of Harrison Bader; the trade of Tommy Pham; a bounce-back 2019 for Fowler; the (offensive) demise of Harrison Bader; Fowler, in mid-July of 2019, back in center.