The St. Louis Cardinals provided a positive update on outfielder Jordan Walker, who has been out since late May with a wrist injury.
According to MLB.com’s John Denton, Walker has made significant progress and has been hitting and lifting weights without any pain. Per Cardinals manager Oli Marmol, Walker will likely need a brief minor league rehab assignment before returning to the major league club.
Walker suffered the injury on May 28, and was placed on the 10-day IL three days later on May 31. He received an anti-inflammatory injection last Wednesday after previously being unable to finish a workout days prior due to the inflammation.
This is Walker’s second bout with injuries this year, as he had previously suffered a strange injury during spring training in which he stepped on a sprinkler head while tracking a fly ball. He escaped serious injury following the incident, but was shut down for a week to recover.
Walker has struggled at the plate this season, batting to a .215 average with three home runs, and a .583 OPS in 47 games. Prior to hitting the shelf, Walker had begun to find his stride, hitting .318 with an .803 OPS in his last seven games. Outfielder Ryan Vilade was called up in the wake of the injury, who has also had a rough go at the plate. Vilade is just 1-11 in five games this season, but has provided the team with defensive versatility.
The Cardinals currently sit in second place in the NL Central at 36-29, 4.0 games back of the first-place Chicago Cubs, and 1.0 games back of the third Wild Card spot in the NL.
