Just came in: The Cardinals are still the Cardinals.
After Jordan Walker was hastily given a return ticket to Triple A Memphis for not hitting as well as Rogers Hornsby in his 12 at-bats during a strange week-long stay with the Cardinals, management finally noticed that Nolan Gorman was, er, having trouble hitting.
On Wednesday, baseball president John Mozeliak reunited Walker and Gorman as teammates.
Memphis.
One of my favorite cities, Memphis. Home of the blues, soul, rock ‘n’ roll – and failed young hitters sent to Tennessee by the Cardinals to rebuild their batting, swing and confidence. Gorman and Walker can devour barbecue, watch the famous duck parade at the Peabody Hotel and maybe take the time to visit Graceland.
Hey, it’s a nice retreat after a stay at the Heartbreak Hotel in St. Louis – aka Busch Stadium.
The Cardinals’ 2024 offense should revolve around Paul Goldschmidt, Nolan Arenado, Gorman and Walker. Not exclusively, of course. A strong lineup should be reinforced by Willson Contreras, Brendan Donovan, Lars Nootbaar, etc.
But most importantly, there had to be a strong connection between the established stars and the rising stars. That was the plan. And the plan fell apart.
Goldy and Arenado have entered the aging curve earlier and harder than expected. And that is dangerous and threatening.
In 2023, Walker and Gorman combined for 42 home runs, 36 doubles and a .462 slugging percentage. Gorman was just shy of his 24th birthday. Walker was almost 22 years old.
Now that the Cardinals already have two important pillars in Goldschmidt and Arenado, they will gain two more in Walker and Gorman. Lots of strength for the future!
The old guys have aged at lightning speed, and there’s no way to turn back time. The young guys haven’t aged and matured fast enough, and there’s no way to make all their low points disappear at the push of a button.
Wait a minute, can’t the team’s hitting coaches get Walker and Gorman back on track?
That’s funny.
Which hitting trainers?
It’s sad, but Walker and Gorman will receive more guidance and mentoring from the Triple-A staff.
As for Goldschmidt and Arenado… Well, you can’t reverse the aging process. There is no fountain of youth in Kiener Plaza.
In 2022, Goldy and Nado combined for 65 home runs and 218 RBIs, and both had a slugging percentage well over .500. Goldschmidt won the NL MVP award and Arenado finished third.
In 2024, with just 37 games left, Goldschmidt and Arenado will have combined for 32 home runs and 104 RBIs, and both proud men will have a slugging average below .400.
The Cardinals are stuck in a strange position, somewhere in the generation gap.
With Gorman and Walker they had the young and restless.
They had the old and powerless in Goldschmidt and Arenado.
The result is a St. Louis offense that ranks second to last in the National League in runs scored per game, and an offense that could not score effectively with runners on the field even if the home plate umpire agreed not to call strikes.
What the Cardinals did to Walker is malpractice in baseball. But with Gorman, it was the opposite. This patient had shortness of breath and wheezing – and this baseball surgery left him wasting away and worsening his condition.
As of June 5, Gorman has been on the short list of the worst hitters in the major leagues. Here is Gorman’s ranking among the 241 MLB hitters who have at-batted at least 150 times since that date:
- .170 batting average, No. 236
- .239 Onbase Percentage, No. 239
- .291 Slugging Percentage, No. 236
- .511 Onbase + Slugging, No. 235
- Strikeout rate: 40.3 percent, No. 241
According to wRC+, Gorman’s offensive output was 58 percent below league average since June 5. (And yes, the team kept it that way.) And his five home runs during that time earned him 157th place on that list of 241 hitters. The left-handed hitter was increasingly overwhelmed by right-handed pitchers.
There’s a hell of a lot to fix here. Here’s a sampling of the issues, with all the stats starting on June 5 and ending with Gorman’s merciful demotion.
+ Four-seam fastballs: .136 average, .46.3% strikeout rate, 36.5% whiff swing rate.
+ Offspeed pitches: 133 average, 35.5% strikeout rate, 47% whiff swing rate.
+ Surprise moments: 53.3% strikeout rate.
+ Slider/Sweeper: .159 average, 50% strikeout rate, 47.4% whiff swing rate.
The Cardinals allowed Gorman’s disturbing free fall to last two months and 16 days.
“It obviously comes down to performance and at some point you have to deliver consistent performance or we have to find someone who can do it,” Mozeliak told reporters on Wednesday.
Way too slow, Mo. You gave up on Walker too quickly, and too slow to realize that Gorman was a desperate young hitter who desperately needed a mental break from his chronic failure. And that won’t dispel the belief that the Cardinals have no idea what they’re doing with young hitters. And before anyone screams, “What about Alec Burleson?” I’ll give you two words: Matt Carpenter. He’s the guy who unleashed Burly’s power with excellent advice. Maybe Carpenter can take over as hitting coach.
Gorman’s hitting clinic sessions in Memphis should help him. This long-overdue move will definitely help the Cardinals. Gorman didn’t develop into a semi-automatic out, posting a terrible .209 on-base percentage and .220 slug in his last 13 games. And he struck out in five of his last 11 at-bats.
That gap means more time at second base for Brendan Donovan and more time in the outfield and more at-bats for Tommy Pham. And the Cardinals could reshuffle center field by using Lars Nootbaar there more often. Time away from the Cardinals will do Gorman good. Who knows? Maybe he’ll even find a coach down there who can help him recognize throws and master high fastballs. See? I’m trying to be hopeful.
Not much changes: The organization’s appalling neglect of Gorman was as terrible as the rush to push Walker back to Memphis.
Thanks for reading…
–Bernie
Bernie, who will be inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 2023, has been offering informed opinions and perspectives on St. Louis sports in his columns, radio shows and podcasts since 1985.
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Statistics used in my baseball columns come from FanGraphs, Baseball Reference, Statcast, StatHead, Baseball Savant, Baseball Prospectus, Brooks Baseball Net and Sports Info Solutions, unless otherwise noted.
Bernie Miklasz
For the past 36 years, Bernie Miklasz has entertained, educated and connected with generations of St. Louis sports fans.
Bernie is best known for his 26 years as lead sports columnist at the Post-Dispatch, but has also written for The Athletic, Dallas Morning News and Baltimore News American. A 2023 inductee into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame, Bernie has hosted radio shows in St. Louis, Dallas, Baltimore and Washington DC.
Bernie, his wife Kirsten and their cats live in the Skinker-DeBaliviere neighborhood in St. Louis.
