Cardinals: Jordan Walker looks like a star in the Arizona Fall League

The Cardinals top prospect is impressing both at the plate and in the outfield during the Arizona Fall League

Jordan Walker, the St. Louis Cardinals top prospect and 6th best prospect in baseball according to MLB.com, is tearing up the Arizona Fall League and giving fans a preview of what is to come in St. Louis.

The 20-year old is playing with and against the best prospects in baseball, and is slashing .286/.360/.571 with 2 HR and 6 RBI in 6 games. Walker finished the 2022 regular season with an .898 OPS in AA Springfield and is carrying that elite production into the Fall League action.

What may be the most impressive part of his performance so far is Walker’s rapid development as an outfielder. Walker began to make the transition to a full-time outfielder in August, and is now showing an elite arm after throwing a 99.5 MPH dot to catcher Pedro Pages. That is the hardest thrown ball by a Cardinals outfielder since Statcast began keeping track in 2015.

There are very few questions about the future of Walker’s bat, but evaluators have been waiting to see how the 6’5, 220lb outfielder would play defensively in his new position. So far, Walker has shown the ability to not just handle all three outfield positions, but play them at a high level.

Walker’s physical tools alone made him a tantalizing prospect in the 2022 MLB Draft, and its crazy to think he fell all the way to the Cardinals at pick 21. Walker’s power, bat to ball skills, arm, and even speed all grade out as major strengths, and is why so many believe the sky is the limit for Walker.

It is rare to find a player with the guy of physical tools that Walker has, let alone a player that is combining that with the pure production at such a young age. I broke down a few months ago how his statistics were already looking very similar to some of the game’s best players at his age. The only thing that remains to be seen is Walker getting a chance at the big league level.

As St. Louis turns the page on the Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina era, they may be entering into a new, exciting era led by Walker, the rest of the Cardinals emerging core, and current stars like Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado. If Walker continues his current trajectory, he will make an instant impact for St. Louis and quickly make a name for himself in the national media.