"Air Jordan" Walker? Cardinals' right fielder just made the best catch of his career
Michael Jordan would be proud of the highlight play Jordan Walker just made for the Cardinals.
The St. Louis Cardinals had a lot of doubters going into the season, and many have already begun to write them off after a rough series against "Earth's Mightiest Heroes" (no, not The Avengers, it's the checkbook Los Angeles Dodgers). In need of a turnaround against former manager Mike Shildt and the San Diego Padres, the Cardinals' offense, pitching, and yes, their defense, have come out to play.
Coming off a terrible rookie season defensively, outfielder Jordan Walker spent the entire offseason working on his defense to make major strides in that area. Throughout Spring Training, his performance in right field was a mixed bag, and so there were major question marks going into the season around his glove.
And then, out of nowhere, "Air Jordan" showed up in right field.
Sprinting to his right, Walker chased down a ball in the right-center field gap, a ball that not even the speedy Victor Scott II was going to be able to get to, and made an incredible diving play to rob Jackson Merrill of extra bases. The play, sorry, the web gem, was a huge momentum boost in an already great came so far, as the Cardinals went on to add even more runs to their total in the following half inning.
No, Walker's defensive concerns are not gone, but boy was that play fun to watch and an encouraging sign of his development.
This team is going to be really fun to watch this year. Walker, entering his second year with the Cardinals, has the highest ceiling of the young Cardinal position players, but there is plenty of excitement to be had with rookies Masyn Winn and Victor Scott II. All three are tremendous athletes, capable of making highlight-reel plays on both sides of the game. That's not even mentioning young young studs like Brendan Donovan, Lars Nootbaar, Ivan Herrera, and Alec Burleson.
Keep an eye on Walker in right field, as even if he's not making this kind of grabs frequently, improvement in the little things out there will go a long way to shoring up the biggest hole in his game.