On Wednesday, the struggling St. Louis Cardinals made a very puzzling move.
Despite the early production of top prospect Jordan Walker, who made the Opening Day roster, the team decided to send him down to Triple-A Memphis.
The move was made to clear up their outfield logjam.
In a corresponding move, Taylor Motter was brought back after being designated for assignment.
The 20-year-old was hitting .274 with two home runs and 11 RBI and had also posted an OPS of .718.
He had sat on the bench for three of the Cardinals’ previous four games.
Bob Nightengale of USA Today announced the news on Twitter.
The struggling #STLCards send prized rookie prospect Jordan Walker back to the minors
— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) April 26, 2023
This is certainly a puzzling move by the Cardinals.
Despite slightly tapering off, Walker had produced better numbers at the plate than either Tyler O’Neill, Alec Burleson, Lars Nootbaar, or Dylan Carlson.
While it’s very likely that this won’t last long, the move itself is a very odd one for the Cardinals to make, especially in the midst of their offensive struggles.
The outfield has underperformed to start the season.
And while the Cardinals needed to clear out the logjam in the outfield, sending Walker down as opposed to Carlson, Burleson, or O’Neill will have Cardinals fans a little bit confused.
On Wednesday, it appeared as if the move didn’t do them any good as they lost yet another excruciating game against the San Francisco Giants, losing their third consecutive series in the process.
The Cards are now 9-16 and own the second-worst record in the National League, as they fell to the bottom of the NL Central once again.
NEXT:
Cardinals Writer Sums Up The Precarious State Of The Team
