The St. Louis Cardinals dropped their series opener to the Chicago Cubs on Friday afternoon by getting shut out, 3-0.
The Cards will, however, have a chance to even the series up on Saturday afternoon with another game against their NL Central rivals.
Before the Cubs game on Saturday, manager Oliver Marmol opted to shuffle some things around in the Cardinals’ lineup, and one of the changes includes Jordan Walker.
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Jordan Walker Batting 3rd on Saturday
Aside from the big news on Saturday, which is that Joshua Baez will make his MLB debut with the Cardinals, two notable changes in Oli Marmol’s lineup is Jordan Walker and Alec Burleson, the two middle-of-the-order bats, swapping places, as Walker will bat third and Burleson takes over at cleanup.
It’s likely because Matthew Boyd is starting for the Cubs, and he is a southpaw.
Here is the full St. Louis Cardinals batting order for 8/15, per @UnderdogMLB:
Jordan Walker is Having a Breakout Campaign for Cards
It’s been well documented and written about already, but Jordan Walker is really having a breakout season for the Cardinals, and if they are to earn a playoff berth this season, Walker’s offensive output would have a lot to do with it.
Walker went 0-for-3 in the series opener and has been slumping a little bit, but he still carries an average of .282 with 23 home runs, 84 RBI, and 72 runs scored.
He’s also added an OPS+ of 132 and a bWAR of 3.3 this season, which are both CLEAR career-highs.
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St. Louis Cardinals Announce Jordan Walker Change Before Cubs Game