Now is not the time for the Cardinals to give up on Jordan Walker

I'll be the first to admit that I'm worried about the long-term trajectory of Jordan Walker's career, specifically with the St. Louis Cardinals. I don't have a ton of optimism that things are going to get better, and yet, I don't see why the Cardinals would shy away from their plan to rehabilitate his performance with the big league club this year. At least not now.

Walker knows the day is coming when Lars Nootbaar will be healthy, Joshua Baez will be knocking at the door even louder, Nelson Velázquez could be mashing, and Walker's results on the field will dictate whether or not he gets to play over those guys. When that day comes, who gets those corner outfield opportunities will matter a lot for the Cardinals' future, and Walker will have to prove why he should own one of those spots.

But for now? I see no reason to boot him from that opportunity, especially given the Cardinals' stated goals for the year.

The Cardinals should not abandon their plans for Jordan Walker this year, at least not yet

Walker has looked awful in spring training action so far. There's no way around that. He's slashing .176/.222/.176 with zero extra-base hits and 14 strikeouts in just 34 at-bats, and while I'll remind everyone that spring training stats really don't matter, it's not hard to watch him and see that he's clearly in his own head at the plate. We even have reports out of camp that indicate Walker looks unhappy and lacking the excitement that seems to mark most others in camp.

All of this follows two straight years where Walker took a major step back offensively. Since the beginning of the 2024 season, Walker has been slashing .211/.270/.324 with just 11 home runs and 176 strikeouts in 574 plate appearances. It's been bad for years now, and his camp results don't look any better, so why on earth would I suggest the Cardinals continue forward with him in right field, rather than send him down to Memphis?

There are multiple key factors that play into that decision.

1. First, let's not forget the upside Walker has shown before. Aside from being one of the top prospects in baseball, Walker had a great rookie campaign with St. Louis in 2023, posting a 116 wRC+ with 16 home runs and 19 doubles in just 117 games as a 21-year-old. For context, JJ Wetherholt is about to make his MLB debut as a 23-year-old, and putting up those numbers would be a great year for him.
2. If the Cardinals truly believe in their big league staff, which Chaim Bloom does, then the best place for him to work on these issues, at least right now, is with that staff on a daily basis. The Cardinals are in a rebuilding year, which affords them the ability to have Walker struggling, especially if that is part of what they think will eventually lead to success for him.
3. Oli Marmol has been very clear this offseason and in camp that getting Walker back to himself is a top priority for him. In a Zoom call with myself and other Cardinals' bloggers/podcasters last week, Marmol doubled down on that. Going back on that sentiment already would likely do more damage to Walker's future than good.
4. Let's remember, the Marmol and Cardinals' hitting coach Brant Brown have been honest publicly regarding Walker's issues in the past, even calling out his preparation and willingness to change to the media when frustration was at an all-time high. This winter, Marmol, Bloom, and the rest of the Cardinals' brass have been vocal about how Walker has made strides in his communication with the club and work ethic, and they believe that is going to lead to better results in the future.
5. Right now, the Cardinals have the opportunity to let Walker play most days and figure things out at the plate. Yes, I like Nathan Church, but I don't think the Cardinals need to pull the plug on Walker already to give Church at-bats. Could that be coming in June or July? Certainly, but for now, there's still far too much upside with Walker to make that kind of change.

We've talk religously about how the Cardinals new player development staff has been a huge win for the organization, so while I understand scar tissue from the past of other failed prospects making it hard to believe Walker can ever turn this around, I do think we need to show a bit of trust in what the Cardinals' new brass believes is best for Walker. If they thought he was a lost cause or truly needed to be in the minor leagues right now, they wouldn't hesitate to make those decisions. But the Cardinals clearly believe there is reason to work with him at the Major League level, and I'm going to trust in this new group's thought process on that until I'm given reason not to.

I understand the angst and pessimism around Walker right now, I really do. But patience is required right now. Time is clearly ticking on that "runway" he has this year, but there's no reason for the Cardinals to pull the plug or make any rash decisions on his opportunity with the club right now.