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The St. Louis Cardinals enter Tuesday's action five games out of the final Wild Card spot in the National League. The team activated Matt Carpenter from the injured list, waived Brandon Crawford, called up Luken Baker, and sent down Jordan Walker on Tuesday. The slew of moves come as the Cardinals ride a 1-5 stretch. The demotion of Walker has caused a fan uproar. President of Baseball Operations John Mozeliak spoke with Katie Woo of The Athletic about Walker's demotion.
“John Mozeliak said the decision to send down Jordan Walker came down to consistent playing time,” Woo posted on social media. “'My philosophy has always been if you’re a young player, you need to play. I always cringe at the idea of someone who’s 22 years old sitting on the bench.'”
The right fielder has played only 24 games this season and is hitting a woeful .145 and has a 30 OPS+. Walker is one of the prized prospects in the Cardinals' system and his development is very important to the future of the team. As Masyn Wynn has blossomed into a star, the Cardinals are turning their focus to making sure Walker becomes one.
The consistent playing time that Mozeliak spoke about could be at the professional level. Fangraphs has the Cardinals' playoff chances at only 4.3%, meaning that they could give Walker some run in otherwise meaningless games.
Future of Cardinals and Jordan Walker
The St Louis Cardinals are on the precipice of missing the playoffs for the second consecutive season. They also are in danger of finishing under .500 for two straight seasons for the first time since 1994. They rested on the star power of Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt coming into both seasons and it has not worked.
The Cardinals must prioritize developing young stars starting right now. While Wynn has been excellent, many of their other young player have struggled this year. Second baseman Nolan Gorman is 24 years old and is hitting .205 this season. 25-year-old outfielder Dylan Carlson has no home runs in 59 games. And 25-year-old Jose Fermin has a .186 batting average in 51 career games.
While there are certainly players to be excited about, there are also players to be concerned about. The Cardinals must ensure that those players get run down the stretch and can get some good at-bats heading into next season. As Arenado and Goldschmidt continue to age, the development of these youngsters is imperative.
The Cardinals bought at this year's deadline, bringing in pitcher Erick Fedde and bringing back outfielder Tommy Pham. At the time, they had a 23.7% chance of making the playoffs. They did not give up a ton to get them, but the move shows that the franchise is focused on now.
The Cardinals, per usual, sit in the top five in attendance this season, according to ESPN. If the front office shows that they are pushing for this season, people will continue to show up. They cannot think this way, however. Jordan Walker should have been kept at the MLB level and given a spot in the everyday lineup.
