Jordan Walker (21, St. Louis Cardinals), who is called the ‘second Albert Pujols’, took his first step toward becoming a major league legend.
On the 6th (Korean time), Walker started as the 7th hitter in right field against the Atlanta Braves in the 2023 Major League Baseball held at St. Louis Busch Stadium in Missouri, USA.
After two outs in the bottom of the second inning, Walker entered his first at-bat and turned around with a swing strikeout. In the bottom of the 5th inning, with one out and the second at-bat, he withdrew with a floating ball to the left fielder.안전놀이터
After warming up, the walker fired a large cannon. In the bottom of the 7th inning, where the team was behind 1-5, with no runners out, reliever Michael Tonkin lifted the slider on the 7th pitch and passed it over the left fence. It flew 383 feet (about 117 m) with a launch angle of 21 degrees and an exit velocity of 104.2 miles (about 168 km).
At the end of the 9th inning, the last at-bat, with 2 out and 2 base, he hit a 1 RBI double that flowed along the left line to make the score 2-5. The final score was 4 at-bats, 2 hits (1 home run), 2 RBIs and 1 run. Despite the team’s 2-5 defeat, Walker’s performance was outstanding.
Walker wore a St. Louis uniform with the 21st overall pick in the first round of the 2020 Major League Baseball Draft. He graduated from the minor leagues in two years, excluding the 2020 season, when the minor leagues were not held due to Corona 19. He played a remarkable role with a batting average of 0.310 (244 hits in 786 at-bats), 33 home runs, and 116 RBIs in 201 career games, and an OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage) of 0.913.
As a highly anticipated top-class prospect, he is continuing his momentum in the major leagues. In the 2023 season, he has a batting average of 0.333 (8 hits in 24 bats), 1 home run, 5 RBIs, and an OPS of 0.902 in 6 games.
From the exhibition game, Pujols, a major league hitter with 703 home runs, was mentioned about Walker’s impressive performance. Last month, Major League Baseball’s official website, ‘MLB.com’, praised Walker, saying, “If you look at Jordan Walker, who is 6 feet 5 inches (about 196 cm) tall, Pujols seems to have come back to life 20 years ago.”
Pujols and Walker have one thing in common: they debuted in the major leagues at the age of 21. I wonder if Walker can become a St. Louis legend like Pujols.