The St. Louis Cardinals have shifted to at least a little bit of a youth movement when they called up Jimmy Crooks III and Cesar Prieto last week. Even though the two of them are filling a backup role for now, it was a nice change of pace for the organization to actually call up exciting, young players rather than have roster spots filled by guys with no expected roles or futures with the team.
One major player in this youth movement, even though he’s been on the roster for the last 2.5 years, is Jordan
Walker. The former top prospect has spent the entire season on the big league roster except for a couple of rehab assignments, one where he was activated very quickly and another where he was left in the minors until the Cardinals were happy with his approach at the plate. That approach has been frustrating to watch, not just for fans but also the coaching staff. In an honest interview with KMOX, both Oli Marmol and Brant Brown had some specific mentions to Walker when talking approach and adjustments at the plate. The interview is worth a listen but a lot of the concern from Brown came from Walker’s inability to game plan.
Game planning and making adjustments sounds like something that could be (and arguably, should have already been) done in the minor leagues. However, Walker was seen as such a polished hitter that he was deemed ready for the major leagues after being a top prospect, and one of the more anticipated prospects, in baseball. We saw glimpses of his ability to hit the ball hard, but the lift was not there. Despite a solid hitting streak and average to start his career, Walker was sent down to Memphis to adjust his swing. Here begins the up and down roller coaster of his Cardinals tenure, as he was working on his swing but also learning a new position. In that debut season of 2023, Walker ended up playing in 117 major league games and put up a .276 average with 16 homers and near league-average 22% strikeout and 8% walk rates. It was a solid start but it was clear there were adjustments to be made.
Unfortunately, 2024 did not see Walker sustain that success. He struggled to a .167 batting average with 15 strikeouts and a .542 OPS and was demoted to Memphis at the end of the month. Walker could not even force his way into the major league lineup even with Michael Siani, Dylan Carlson, and Victor Scott II not doing much offensively. When he finally made it back to St. Louis thanks to the Cardinals’ season being over, Walker was hitting .263 with 9 homers in 85 games in the minors. This started a weird trend for Walker as he was called up on August 12, demoted on the 20th, and then recalled again on the 30th. With some playing time opportunity in September, the outfielder ended the year putting up a .780 OPS and five homers in the month, inspiring at least some confidence he was back.
Enter 2025. Promised everyday at-bats, Walker was handed the chance to prove himself and simply go up to the plate and hit. He didn’t do that. At all. In over 300 at-bats this season, Walker has an abysmal .587 while standing at 6’6, 250 pounds. For comparison’s sake, the 5’11 Siani put up a .570 OPS in near equal opportunity last season. Walker’s struggles have been on full display as his approach at the plate is completely gone. Anything on the outer half (or feet further) are constantly flailed at and there has been little reason for optimism. At this point of the season, Walker has a 31.7% strikeout rate and his walks have dropped to 6.4%. He has struck out the exact amount of times this year as he did throughout all of 2023… a season where he had 106 more at-bats than he does now. After the demotions in 2023 and 2024, Walker only has one option season remaining, which I could see being a factor in the team’s handling of him this season.
During Walker’s struggles, fans have asked for demotion to be met with others responding that Walker “has nothing left to prove in the minors” and that he needs to figure it out at the MLB level. I completely disagree with that, even if the Cardinals have nothing left to play for this season and probably next. There is nothing to show that Walker needs to be in the Opening Day starting lineup last year, not to mention even the 26-man roster. Not using the option this season is defendable. Next year, though, I do not see much argument. If preparation and game planning are truly part of Walker’s problems at the plate, the minor leagues seems like a great place to learn how to get into game day habits. There’s also an interesting trend around the major leagues where other teams actually promote their pitchers from Triple-A to pitch in major league games. Chances are, if Walker were to spend some time in Memphis next year, he would see at least a handful of pitchers at both the minor and major league levels.
Don’t get me wrong, I do not think it is time to deal Jordan Walker and I’m not sure if that time will ever come. He is only 23 years old and is still maturing both physically and mentally so dealing him at his lowest may not be best. Especially for fans who still talk about Randy Arozarena, Adolis Garcia, and even Richie Palacios, imagine the outcry if Walker were to take off in another organization. I have seen blame being passed to Marmol and Brown for not being leaders in Walker’s development, but at the major league level, the team needs to win while balancing development. The coaching staff has others to work with beyond just Walker and if he is actually unwilling to listen to coaching as it sounds, why spend additional time and energy on someone who does not reciprocate?
