Cardinals' Jordan Walker is Doing Things Not Seen Since 2009 Albert Pujols

Jordan Walker's magical, bounce-back campaign has been praised all season for the St. Louis Cardinals and yet it probably hasn't been talked about enough.

Walker was among the top prospects in baseball when he broke into the big leagues with St. Louis at just 20 years old back in 2023. He entered the majors with massive expectations. As a rookie, he was solid. Walker slashed .276/.342/.445 with 16 homers and 51 RBIs in 117 games played. Those were good numbers overall, but the last two seasons took a significant turn for the worse. Between the 2024 and 2025 seasons, Walker was a -2.5-WAR player and batted .211 with 11 homers and 61 RBIs in 162 games played.

Then, he struggled in Spring Training before the 2026 season to the point where some fans called on the club to start him down in Triple-A. Fortunately, the club didn't listen. Walker has broken out and was named to his first All-Star Game as a result. Walker entered the day on Sunday slashing .291/.350/.520 with an .870 OPS, 19 homers and a league-leading 63 RBIs in 84 games played. Plus, he already set a new career high with 11 stolen bases. He was at 3.2 wins above replacement, which is higher than his first three seasons combined.

Jordan Walker Is Having A Magical Season

Jul 2, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Lars Nootbaar (21) and right fielder Jordan Walker (18) celebrate after a victory over the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

On Sunday, he added to those totals with a three-run homer to increase his homer total on the season to 20. He added a sacrifice fly to increase his RBI total to 67.

That's why he's an All-Star! 🌟 pic.twitter.com/ReZJmbAuea
— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) July 5, 2026

In the process, he etched his name in Cardinals history. Walker joined Albert Pujols as the only two players in team history to hit 20 homers or more and steal 10 or more bases before the All-Star break in a season. The Cardinals announced the news and Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch shared it on X.

"Jordan Walker and Albert Pujols are the only Cardinals in club history with 20 homers and 10 stolen bases by the All-Star break," Goold wrote. "Walker in 2026. Pujols in 2009."

Walker is having a season for the ages and is just 24 years old. He may be in his fourth season, but he's just a few months older than rookie phenom JJ Wetherholt. The future is bright for this organization if these two can stay healthy and together for years to come.

These two look like franchise pillar-level talents, and are still so young. The vibes are high in St. Louis, to say the least.

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