The St. Louis Cardinals have a new consensus top prospect

The St. Louis Cardinals have a new consensus top prospect. Meet Jordan Walker, who may soon be a top-5 prospect in baseball.

For the last couple years, the St. Louis Cardinals have had two consensus top prospects: Nolan Gorman and Matthew Liberatore. Gorman, of course, is going to be their second or third baseman of the future while Liberatore has the upside to be a high-end top-of-the-rotation arm.

While both of them have upside to be foundational players for 10+ seasons, neither are considered the Cardinals’ top prospect. That honor goes to infielder Jordan Walker, who was recently ranked by Baseball America as their No. 1 prospect.

It’s possible that Walker, 19, will be a top-10, if not top-5 prospect in baseball, before the end of the 2022 season. He has elite upside and is viewed by people inside the Cardinals’ front office as their best internal hitting prospect since Oscar Taveras. He will likely debut in 2023, considering that he has only played in Single-A and High-A, but the hype surrounding Walker is at full blast after he hit .317/.388/.548 with 14 home runs and 48 RBI in his first full minor-league season.

Imagine an infield with Nolan Arenado, Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Gorman AND Walker. At least three of them will be on the major-league roster at some point this season, with Gorman likely to debut at some point early in the year. It would give the Cardinals arguably the most talented infield in the majors, with each player capable of hitting 30+ home runs.

Of course, that plan can change in an instant if Arenado opts out of his contract after the 2022 season. But Gorman and Walker are locked in as foundational pieces in the infield and, paired with Jack Flaherty and Liberatore, gives the Cardinals a very strong core that should keep them in postseason contention.

But Walker has emerged as the cream of the crop and if the recent buzz surrounding him is any indication, he has the potential to be one of the best players in baseball. Give president of baseball operations John Mozeliak credit for holding onto him when many teams asked about Walker in trade talks.

Some executives may have pulled the trigger on a trade. In not dealing Walker, Mozeliak has set the Cardinals up for both short- and long-term success.