Jordan Walker joining 20/20 club cements unreal turnaround season for Cardinals star

He did it! Jordan Walker has cemented himself in both St. Louis Cardinals and Major League History by joining the 20/20 club after swiping his 20th base of the season on Wednesday. Man, what a year it has been for the young man.

Walker is the first Cardinals player to achieve that feat since Tommy Pham did back in 2017, when he swiped 25 bases and hit 23 homers on the year.

Heading into 2026, it felt like a make-or-break year for Walker. Coming off two incredibly dissapointing years where he was statistically one of the worst players in baseball, Walker completely turned his career around, becoming an All-Star, Home Run Derby Champion, and cementing himself as one of the brightest young stars in the game.

Jordan Walker's turnaround with Cardinals needs to continue to be celebrated

The jury is still out on whether he's a "superstar" in the vein of players like Pete Crow-Armstrong, Shohei Ohtani, Yordan Alvarez, Bobby Witt Jr., and other greats in today's game, but he's blown away any expectations that someone could have had for Walker this year. Even if he could have found a way to just be a league-average hitter and not dip into negative WAR, that would have been a huge win. Instead, he turned in a phenomenal season.

This year, Walker is slashing .278/.336/.482 (.818 OPS) with 28 home runs, 100 RBI, and 20 stolen bases to go around with 33 doubles. If Walker is able to hit two more home runs before the end of the season, he'll become the first Cardinal since Ray Lankford in 1998 to have a 30/20 season.

While much attention has gone on Walker's bat this year, and rightfully so, the way he's maximized his speed on the basepaths has been a major plus for the team. It's rare to find a guy his size who runs that well, and Walker uses that speed to both swipe bags and push the envelope when his teammates put the ball in play.

It says a lot that the Cardinals haven't had another player outside of Pham do this since 2004. The Cardinals haven't really had power/speed guys that have panned out for very long. Tyler O'Neill looked like he could be that guy, but outside of his 2021 season, he never put it all together. Joshua Baez has the ability to do this as well, and JJ Wetherholt could sneak his way into some 20/20 seasons as well.

In today's game, you need to be able to win in a lot of ways. Walker's game is the prime example of that. He can beat you by putting the ball over the fence, by putting the ball in play, by taking a walk, and when he is on base, by stealing a bag or two. As the Cardinals' lineup continues to add more power and speed, it will likely only maximize Walker's impact.

As the season wraps up, it will be interesting to see if the Cardinals and Walker can come to an agreement on a long-term deal to keep him as one of the faces of the Cardinals. It's a very exciting time in Cardinals baseball, and it's sweet to see Walker at the center of it.

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