MLB Pundit Urges Cardinals To Trade Former Top Prospect Needing Fresh Start

The St. Louis Cardinals have a youth-laden roster filled with untapped potential but hopefully, this season will be the year several youngsters break out of their shells.

Former top prospects Nolan Gorman and Lars Nootbaar have logged periods of success throughout their short careers with the Cardinals but neither has lived up to expectations set for them when they were storming their way through the club's farm system.

Gorman and Nootbaar aren't the only former top prospects who've struggled with transitioning to the big leagues. A young slugger drafted 21st overall in 2020 has floundered since debuting two years ago and is being recommended as a potential trade chip.

"Jordan Walker was a surprise addition to the St. Louis Cardinals Opening Day roster in 2023 thanks to a stellar performance during spring training, and he began his Major League Baseball career with a 12-game hitting streak," Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter wrote Thursday when outlining potential change-of-scenery candidates for this upcoming season. "Since that point, he has been shuttled back and forth between Triple-A (Memphis) and the majors enough times to believe the Cardinals may have permanently derailed his development. The 6'6", 250-pound slugger also continues to be miscast as an outfielder, and with Willson Contreras shifting to first base and Nolan Arenado still clogging up third base, there is no path to him returning to a corner infield spot in the near future."

Walker batted .201 with 16 extra-base hits including five home runs, 20 RBIs and a .619 OPS in 51 games played for St. Louis last season -- quite the downfall from his rookie campaign the year prior, where he belted 16 dingers with a .276/.342/.445 slash line.

"The best thing the Cardinals could do for him at this point is give him a fresh start, but at 22 years old, they no doubt still view him as a potential key piece of their long-term plans," Reuter finished with.

Considering that the Cardinals have a history of prematurely giving up on potential star players, it seems unlikely that they'd trade Walker this early in his career -- having only played in 168 major-league games with St. Louis.

Also, the Cardinals' player development system was arguably at its lowest point during Walker's journey to the show, so they might decide to be more patient with the rising star. However, this upcoming season will be a significant test for the Georgia native. How he performs in 2025 could make or break his future with the 11-time World Series champions.

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