The prospect who burst onto the scene for St. Louis Cardinals

The prospect who burst onto the scene for St. Louis Cardinals? None other than infielder Jordan Walker, who continues to steal headlines.

Even during the lockout, the hype surrounding St. Louis Cardinals infield prospect Jordan Walker has seemingly grown by the day. He burst onto the scene in 2021, emerging as their consensus top prospect, and was just named as the organization’s breakout prospect from this past season by MLB Pipeline.

Here is what MLB Pipeline had to say: “Walker is a fine pick on his own, having jumped from No. 6 in the Cards rankings to a comfortable spot in the Top 100. The 19-year-old third baseman exhibited an ability to make elite hard contact at Low-A and High-A and consistently put up some of the best exit velocities in Low-A Southeast, where he opened the season. He hit .317/.388/.548 with 14 homers in 82 games, and his pop might only increase as he matures.”

Walker, 19, won’t debut with the Cardinals in 2022 – he’s widely expected to debut in 2023 – but it’s clear that he is going to be a prominent part of the franchise for the next decade. The only question is where he will play in the infield, with some rival scouts believing it will be at first base, though no one with the organization is willing to commit to a long-term position for Walker yet.

Offensively, the Cardinals believe they have a star and are salivating over what they saw this past season. If his power numbers increase, and there is every reason to believe that they will, Walker could quickly emerge into a star.

The Cardinals are trying to temper expectations for Walker. They don’t want to put too much pressure on him before he makes his major-league debut, let alone take an at-bat at the Double-A level. But the buzz in the media is making that task infinitely more difficult, as it’s become clear to everyone in baseball that Gorman may be their latest homegrown superstar.