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The St. Louis Cardinals are waiting for Jordan Walker to show up.
And the former top prospect is running out of time.
Reasons aside, the reality is this -- Walker was once a can't-miss power-hitting phenom in the Cardinals' organization. Even when he first arrived in the big leagues, he looked like he could turn into a special ballplayer.
And then, nightmares.
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Walker has fallen off, and tried to get back up, and fallen again. He's gone to the minor leagues. He's struggled in the major leagues.
Occasionally, he's hit a baseball such a long way that you can't help but dream again on the player he could be.
But really, it's all trending toward disappointment. If Walker can't break through this season, when will he ever? The Cardinals have given him a lot of chances. Eventually, they'll run out.
"In 2022, Walker was the top prospect in the Cardinals’ organization," MLB.com's Bill Ladson wrote in a new article on Wednesday. "Four years later, the Cardinals are wondering whether he will ever reach his potential. Walker has been inconsistent in the batter’s box and he had a Spring Training to forget. However, he worked hard in the hitting lab at Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium to correct his swing, slow things down and be ready for any pitch coming to the plate. For Walker to be successful, he must spread the ball all over the field. He decided to stop thinking too much at the plate and just hit the ball. We’ll see how that goes once the season starts."
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The Cardinals don't have a lot to lose this season. Their expectations are low. They can give Walker all the runway possible, this one last time, to see if he can make it.
At this point, it's hard to avoid the doubts.
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