Jordan Walker’s runway season has not gone as planned this year, as the former St. Louis Cardinals top prospect is currently on the disabled list.
Walker has been put on a 10-day IL because of inflammation in his left wrist. The Cardinals have called up right-handed reliever Roddery Munoz and outfielder Ryan Vilade from Triple-A after Gordon Graceffo was optioned to Memphis following yet another poor performance yesterday.
Jordan Walker’s wrist injury could not have come at a worse time for the Cardinals’ outfielder
It was a pleasant run of success for the 23-year-old outfielder, who has amassed a.926 OPS over his previous five games. Walker has started to smash the ball with greater authority recently, albeit there were still many issues with his game and long-term concerns. Walker’s slash line over the previous 15 games was.273/.289/.432 with 11 RBI.
Even though his defense made significant progress this season, he still has to improve at the bat if he wants to be a long-term member of the Cardinals’ lineup. He is striking out about 40% of the time and is not walking nearly as often as he did at the start of the season.
In the short term, this does enable the Cardinals to incorporate Nolan Gorman into their lineup more often and play Alec Burleson every day against right-handers in right field, which manager Oliver Marmol was open about finding challenging lately.
Walker’s progress is frustrated by this development, but Burleson and Gorman can both benefit from additional playing time and the chance to try to establish larger roles for themselves. Gorman might push the Cardinals to start him more often again if he performs well, while Burleson could utilize this run to establish himself as a vital member of their lineup. When Walker returns, things will get much more problematic if both of those things occur.
As additional information concerning Walker’s injury, his anticipated length of absence, and potential future lineup effects becomes available, we’ll keep you informed.
