MEMPHIS, Tenn. — What had become a noticeable absence in Jordan Walker’s stat line through a combined 46 games at the majors and minors turned into a bit of humor as the 22-year-old Cardinals outfielder played a waiting game for his first home run of 2024.
“It’s just a little joke I have with the team. ... I’ll hit a ball and then it might get caught at the wall or hit off the wall,†Walker, who had not homered in the first two months of the MLB and MiLB seasons, told the Post-Dispatch on Friday. “And they’ll be like, ‘Ah, you need a little bit more in there.’ It’s just a little joke that I have with them.
“Honestly, I feel like some of the swings I’ve put on the ball are good swings, and whether it was just the time of the day or anything like that, any one of them could go over the fence.â€
His wait ended on Saturday.
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In his 107th at-bat since he was optioned to Triple-A Memphis and his 165th in games that count this year, Walker sent a 2-2 change-up over the left field wall at AutoZone Park for a solo home run. The swing generated a 101 mph exit velocity and some celebration as he pumped his fists and smiled at the Memphis dugout as he rounded third base on his way to home plate. The home run trot was Walker’s first in an official game at any level since Sept. 17.
The swing provided an example of what had been missing in his start to the season and a glimpse of the offensive improvements needed to get back to the majors after being optioned for the second time in his young career.
“Getting sent down doesn’t always feel good, man, but it’s just part of the game,†the right fielder said from the Memphis dugout just over a month after being demoted. “You’re not doing well. You get sent down. You have stuff to work on until you start swinging it a little bit better. I feel like I’m swinging it a little bit better. I feel a little bit more comfortable at the plate, and that’s a win; I’m going to take it.â€
After starting in right field for the Cardinals on opening day for the second consecutive season, the second-year outfielder was sent to Class AAA Memphis on April 24 as his offense was slow to start. In 20 games, Walker batted .155 with a .497 on-base plus slugging percentage. The former top prospect collected five extra-base hits (four doubles and a triple) and struck out 18 times in 58 at-bats.
Walker’s line-drive rate sat below 5%, and his ground-ball rate, as it did in 2023 before getting optioned late last April, drew concerns as it sat at 50%, per FanGraphs.
Outside breaking pitches from big league arms led the right-handed hitter to a 42.9% whiff rate when seeing them. Fastballs, which he missed on 19.2% of his swings against them, became a putaway pitch on 33.3% of his strikeouts, per Statcast.
“I think I just got too big and I overswung a lot swinging on the baseball, and that’s just what happens,†Walker said. “(It’s the) beginning of the season, you want to start off well. I get excited (and) overswing, swing under, fouled stuff back. I never lost my faith in myself as a hitter. It was frustrating to see the pitch I wanted to hit. I didn’t put a swing that could cause damage on it.â€
Walker’s tasks in his return to the minors have included improvements in getting the ball off the ground and with his pitch selection. While in the majors at the start of the season, Walker had a 29.1% chase rate and a 59.5% chase-miss rate. Those figures jumped to 38.3% and 73.9%, respectively, when seeing a breaking pitch.
In 27 games since his return to Memphis, Walker has a .266 average, a .385 slugging percentage and eight doubles. He has struck out 32 times in 113 at-bats and produced a 39.1% hard-hit rate, per Statcast. The 22-year-old’s line-drive rate has improved to 22.7%. His ground-ball rate sits at 40.9% entering Monday.
When describing where he feels there have been strides since rejoining Memphis’ roster, Walker feels his success on fastballs early in the counts is similar to what he did a year ago, when he batted .276 with 16 home runs, 19 doubles and a .445 slugging percentage in 117 games as a rookie.
Ten of his 29 hits while in Triple-A have come on four-seam fastballs. Five have come on cutters. He’s generated a 41.2% hard-hit rate on four-seamers and collected five of the 10 hits vs. four-seamers with two strikes in the count.
The process Walker is going through has been described as one in which he’s not attempting to force the ball in the air or over the wall. Rather, it’s going up to the at-bat with a plan and pitch in mind, adjusting to that plan and capitalizing on it.
“I think the most difficult thing in baseball, at least from a hitter’s standpoint, is being able to be ready to pull the trigger on a pitch you’re looking for from pitch one — situation depending — and if it’s not there, take it,†Memphis hitting coach Howie Clark said during an interview at AutoZone Park on Saturday. “Sometimes you will make the right decision and you will fall behind 0-2 because the pitcher executes his pitches. And you’ve done everything right, but he’s just hit a couple of corners.â€
There is no timeline for when Walker will return to the majors.
When outfielder Lars Nootbaar was placed on the injured list Friday for an oblique injury, an ailment that could keep him out for “several weeks,†the Cardinals recalled infielder Jose Fermin to the majors. In Nootbaar’s absence, outfielder Alec Burleson is set to continue playing regularly. Dylan Carlson may receive additional playing time in the outfield, and Fermin, who began getting pregame outfield work in Memphis, could be a possibility to see time there too.
Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol told reporters on Friday that Walker still needs time to develop and that “there is†playing time for the 22-year-old in the big leagues once he is ready.
“He hits the ball really hard, and when it’s in the air, he touches multiple bases per swing,†Marmol said Sunday in Philadelphia to reporters, including the Post-Dispatch’s Derrick Goold. “That could be two bases, it could be three, it could be four. He hits it hard enough that if he just gets it in the air, the damage is real. That’s what he’s been working on.â€
A potential call-up is something Walker acknowledged he “can’t control.†In the meantime, he plans to “keep swinging it.â€
“I feel good with some of the balls hit right here. ... I think it’s a lot more consistent than what I’ve done, compared to what I did in the first part of the year in the big leagues,†he said. “It’s been truly a grind, and I’m actually having a lot of fun. Getting back into the swing of things for sure.â€