Cardinals Address Jordan Walker, Nolan Gorman's Roles

As the 2025 Major League Baseball season approached, much was made about Jordan Walker and Nolan Gorman's potential roles with the organization.

Both were highly-ranked prospects in St. Louis and are 23 years old and 25 years old, respectively. The slugging duo have both showed have promise at the big league level, but have also had their fair share of struggles. While this is the case, the team was clear early on that both guys were going to have big opportunities so the team could see if either are going to be a part of the team's long-term plans.

There's an easier path to playing time for Walker in right field than Donovan in the infield. Brendan Donovan arguably has been the best second baseman in baseball and Nolan Arenado has been manning third base well and already looks like a contender for a Gold Glove Award.

Walker has started to heat up recently and Gorman has showed some positive signs, but still is slashing .191/.286/.303 with one home run in 31 games played.

So, what are things going to look like moving forward with the red-hot Cardinals?

The Athletic's Katie Woo shared a column in which she discussed Walker and Gorman's roles moving forward, as shard by manager Oliver Marmol.

"Here’s how Marmol is currently looking at it: 'I don't want to use Walker as a platoon guy, but I don't mind firing (Alec Burleson) in there strictly against righties,' Marmol said as transcribed by Woo. 'I won't do it every time, because Walker needs to play more than whenever we see a left-handed starter. But the way Alec is swinging it, it's hard not to put him in there against some of the other team's best right-handers. So, Jordan will play against lefties and righties, doesn't matter, and I'll pick Burleson's spots to hit against righties...'

"'The name you're looking for here is Gorman, and that's where I'm having the most trouble finding playing time for. That's not an easy solution. What's tough for Gorman is when you look under the hood, he's making more contact, he's chasing less, he's walking more. Yes, the bat speed is down, but that's at the expense of making contact. He needs a run of games to show that it's coming into play, which is hard to do at the moment because I'm not sure who you'd play him at the expense of. There's not a great answer for it.'"