Cardinals Former No. 1 Prospect Could Soon Lose Roster Spot, Expert Projects

How much of a leash does Jordan Walker have this year?

Aug 28, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Jordan Walker (18) rounds the bases after hitting a two-run home run in the seventh inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Tim Vizer-Imagn Images | Tim Vizer-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals are looking to the future in 2026, but in a way, that future was supposed to arrive a while ago.

Outfielder Jordan Walker, once the unanimous top prospect in the Cardinals' system and a top-five prospect in all of baseball, debuted in the majors with a good, not great 2023 campaign. Since then, it's all been downhill, and one has to wonder how many more chances the 23-year-old has left.

One expert believes the upcoming season isn't just the most important campaign of Walker's young career, but that it could quickly become his last in St. Louis.

If you like our content, choose Sports Illustrated as a preferred source on Google.

How many chances does Walker have left?

Sep 23, 2025; San Francisco, California, USA; St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Jordan Walker (18) celebrates a double against the San Francisco Giants during the seventh inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Eakin Howard-Imagn Images | Eakin Howard-Imagn Images

On Thursday, MLB.com's Brian Murphy included Walker on a list of Cardinals players entering "make or break" seasons, and opined that he could be shipped out, likely in a trade, by the end of the summer.

"Walker's strikeout, whiff, and chase rates were all north of 30% in 2025. His sweet-spot and squared-up rates were near the bottom of the scale," wrote Murphy.

"Walker was sidelined for a total of five weeks during the year due to left wrist inflammation and appendicitis, but the 23-year-old's flaws in the batter's box aren't new. If he can't establish himself this summer, perhaps a change of scenery will be on the horizon."

Indeed, after posting a 113 OPS+ as a rookie, Walker has slumped to the tune of a .211/.270/.324 slash line in 162 major league games over the last two years. That's an OPS+ of 68, so his offense has been 32% worse than league average, and in concert with his very shaky right field defense, he's been worth negative-2.6 bWAR.

The Cardinals potentially trading Lars Nootbaar at some point this season could extend Walker's window of opportunity if he's still on the bubble. But eventually, St. Louis has to start figuring out what it has in the next wave of outfield prospects, led by the power-hitting Joshua Baez, who could be a candidate for a late-season call-up.

More MLB: Cardinals Payroll Hits Historic Low After Brendan Donovan Trade