Inside The Cardinals

MLB Writer Suggests Struggling Cardinals Star Could Be Heating Up

Jordan Walker has struggled again this season for the Cardinals.
Zach Pressnell|
Apr 15, 2019; Milwaukee, WI, USA; A cap rests on the dug out wall with the number 42 on the hat in honor of Major League Baseball s Jackie Robinson Day. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images
Apr 15, 2019; Milwaukee, WI, USA; A cap rests on the dug out wall with the number 42 on the hat in honor of Major League Baseball s Jackie Robinson Day. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images | Michael McLoone-Imagn Images

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St. Louis Cardinals

The St. Louis Cardinals have one of the higher potential players in all of baseball.

Jordan Walker has all the tools to be a star in the league, but he hasn't put the pieces together. On the season, he's slashing .215/.273/.310 with a very concerning OPS+ of 63. That's the worst number he's posted in his career.

Just Baseball's Russ Eddins recently shared some high praise for the struggling star and even suggested he could be on the come up this season.

"Walker has actually been on a tear lately. Since May 15, he is slashing .333/.353/.545 for an .898 OPS and a 150 wRC+. In that stretch, his hard-hit rate is 52.6%," Eddins wrote. "Despite his poor overall performance this year, he ranks in the 72nd percentile for hard hit rate, the 87th for average exit velocity, and the 99th for bat speed. He has an incredible amount of potential. Walker is up there with Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge in terms of how fast he swings the bat.

"Walker also boasts great sprint speed and a strong arm. He ranks in the 85th percentile for sprint speed and the 96th for arm strength. While right field is not the position he grew up playing, he has been serviceable out there. "

Walker has been noticeably hot recently. While his season stats are still pretty worrisome, he's raised his OPS from below .500 to near .600. Beyond that, he's strung some multi hit games together over the last few weeks.

But even Walker's outs have been loud recently. He's squaring up more baseballs now than he's seemingly ever done and they're going to start falling in for more hits.

If Walker can continue to turn his play up, the Cardinals could finally see the level of performance they've expected from him since they drafted him.

More MLB: Cardinals Former Top Prospect Tabbed Trade Candidate

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Zach Pressnell
ZACH PRESSNELL

Zach Pressnell has experience covering all major US sports at both the professional and collegiate levels. He’s produced content for FanSided, Blog Red Machine, The Game Haus, Bethany College Athletics and the Bethany College online newspaper, He graduated from Bethany College (WV) with a degree in Communications and Media Arts, specializing in Sports Journalism. Pressnell was also a four-year member of the baseball team where he earned himself All-PAC recognition as a pitcher (and a cool Tommy John surgery scar). Now, Pressnell specializes in NFL and MLB coverage for Sports Illustrated’s “On SI” network among others. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding "St. Louis Cardinals On SI," please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org

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