If Jordan Walker is for real, the St. Louis Cardinals are now World Series contenders

If the Jordan Walker we are seeing in Spring Training is who the club is getting this season, they can compete with anyone in baseball

The St. Louis Cardinals have question marks, mainly surrounding their starting pitching. But let's be honest, those questions become less daunting when you have as good of a lineup as they do. And if Jordan Walker's Spring Training is a sign of things to come, they have put themselves in the conversation with the best teams in baseball.

Yes, I get it, it's only Spring Training. And yes, there is no need to put that much pressure on a 20-year-old. The best part about this is that the Cardinals' are not expecting Walker to be 2023's Julio Rodriguez, nor do they need him to be. The Cardinals have plenty of outfield and lineup depth to be patient with Walker, but they are giving him every chance to establish himself as a superstar.

At the time of writing this, Walker is slashing .500/.500/1.167 with 3 HR, 3 2B, and 6 RBI in his first 18 ABs of Spring Training. Small sample size, of course, but every time this kid comes to the plate right now, it feels like something magical happens. In Saturday's game against the Nationals, Walker went 4-4 with 2 bombs, a double, and an infield single where he showed off his hustle and speed.

Just watch his highlights so far. The stadium roars, the dugouts watch in amazement, and everyone realizes they are watching something special. Just ask Marlins' manager Skip Schumaker, who said Walker reminds him of Fernando Tatis Jr. Yes, too many Cardinals' prospects have been overhyped, rushed, or expected too much of too early on. But Walker is different.

Here are each of the reasons I believe St. Louis is now a World Series contender if Walker is going to be a star this coming season.

#2 - The Cardinals should have no reason to part with the talent necessary to get an ace with Jordan Walker's emergence

Although it would have been nice for the Cardinals to enter camp with a new front-line pitcher, I get the team being a bit hesitant to trade away their young talent before the 2023 season. If they had traded away guys who would go on to mash and then kept players who got injured or underperformed, their lineup would have gone from a strength to a problem.

If Walker is going to be great in 2023, then they don't really have to worry about that anymore. They can afford to part with multiple players from their young core, still have plenty of depth, and be set up for the future in a big way.

Two of Yepez, Burleson or Gorman will have to start the year in Triple-A assuming Walker makes the Opening Day roster. One of Carlson or O'Neill likely becomes a part-time player. Winn, Gomez, and names like Luken Baker and Mike Antico are also waiting in Memphis. The Cardinals don't have to make a trade, but they will be in the driver's seat for any player that becomes available.

One the Cardinals go out and grab that ace, whoever it is, they then have the pitching to matchup with other elite rotations, and a lineup that will be favored against every other order in the league. Could it get any better than that? Well actually, yes. With more young talent on the way, especially in the pitching department, this team could get even deeper in the next few months.

#3 - The Cardinals pitching has internal reinforcements on the way to supplement this lineup

This spring has been about Jordan Walker, but there are other names, specifically in the pitching department, who are giving the Cardinals reason to believe some of their question marks will be answered soon.

While these guys should not, by any stretch, be relied on as front-line starter answers this year, it's intriguing to think about the kind of impact Gordon Graceffo, Michael McGreevy, or even the likes of Cooper Hjerpe or Tink Hence could have on this pitching staff.

Cooper Hjerpe is a name Cardinals fans aren't talking about a lot yet but could end up being the best of their pitching crop. Check out this prospect breakdown from Kyle Reis, who does an incredible job breaking down Cardinals' prospects every year. Reis, like others, is very high on Hjerpe, even ranking him as his 2A prospect in the Cardinals' system. Hjerpe was drafted in the first round in 2022 and could find his way to St Louis before October.

Gordon Graceffo continues to impress so many inside the Cardinals' organization and outside of it, and I would not be surprised if he finds himself in the St. Louis rotation by season's end either. Tink Hence has elite stuff, and while he's still a ways away from being an MLB starting pitcher, he could be a dominant bullpen arm at the end of the season.

This is not me saying St. Louis doesn't need to acquire a front-line starter, they do. But they can also supplement that with their up-and-coming pitching. I didn't even mention newcomer bullpen arms like Freddy Pacheco, Wilking Rodriguez, or Guillermo Zuniga, who all could bolster the Cardinals staff as well.

Call me an optimist, say I'm overreacting, tell me it's just Spring Training, or whatever else you want to say. If this is the Jordan Walker the Cardinals are getting in 2023, he vaults them into World Series contention and gives them the flexibility to improve the roster even more.