Cardinals’ top 10 moments of 2026, No. 2: Jordan Walker wins Home Run Derby in storybook career revival

This time last year, we were wondering whether or not Jordan Walker had much of a future with the St. Louis Cardinals. My, oh my, how things have changed!

Coming in at second in the Dealin' the Cards podcast countdown of the 10 best moments of the 2026 season for the Cardinals, Jordan Walker had the attention of the baseball world as he mounted an incredible comeback to swipe the 2026 Home Run Derby title away from Phillies Kyle Schwarber at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.

Sure, it's an exhibition event that doesn't actually contribute to winning games, but man, it's hard to overstate how important that moment was for Walker and the Cardinals organization.

Winning the Home Run Derby was a Hollywoodesque moment for Jordan Walker and Cardinals

Walker was supposed to be the next great Cardinals star, and his arrival came at seemingly the perfect time. He debuted the season after Albert Pujols and Yadier Molina hung up their cleats, and he got to play alongside the reigning National League Most Valuable Player and third-place finishers in Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado. It was hard to imagine a better way to usher him into the limelight.

It was an up-and-down start to 2023 for Walker, with a 12-game hitting streak to start his career that was followed by a demotion to Triple-A after he struggled to consistently do damage to the baseball. But after he was called back up later in the season, Walker found himself at the plate and finished his rookie campaign with a .276/.342/.445 slash line with 16 home runs and 51 RBI in 117 games.

But then things completely fell apart for Walker in 2024 and 2025, as he posted a 71 wRC+ in his sophomore campaign and 66 wRC+ in year three, and considering his defense in right field was still atrocious, it was hard to imagine things getting much better for the still 23-year-old.

Even entering spring training, things seemed to be going poorly for Walker. There were real questions regarding whether or not Walker should even be on the Opening Day roster, but a three-day trip to the Cardinals' hitting lab in Jupiter seemed to turn things around for Walker, and he came out swinging in 2026.

He earned himself an All-Star nod, an invitation to the Home Run Derby that he would go on to win, and is now a finalist for the Hank Aaron Award this year after hitting .269/.327/.466 with 29 home runs and 102 RBI to go along with 22 stolen bases in 158 games. It's still pretty surreal to think that Walker was unplayable by the end of 2025, and now he's an All-Star and potential superstar.

That's another reason why the Home Run Derby was so monumental. With the entire baseball world watching Walker, swinging in enemy territory, going up against the hometown pick in Schwarber, and having a big number he had to put up in order to beat Schwarber, Walker swung with ice in his veins, proving that the woes at the plate that often stemmed from his own mental state were no longer ruling over him.

We'll see how Walker follows that career revival in 2027, but it'll be hard to forget how special a season that was for him, and how incredible a moment that Home Run Derby championship was.

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