Is Jordan Walker the worst player in MLB?

[blackinkbiz]

He's a bit shy in at-bats to qualify as a full-time player. But if he did, his .576 OPS would make him dead last against those players who do.

In my 20 years of being an avid baseball fan, I can't remember seeing a worse hitter. Probably because no one this bad ever gets so much playing time.

I'd like to say I feel for the kid because a lot of this is definitely on Mo and Co for skipping AAA, rushing him, and within a month of his MLB debut, saying he needs to change his swing on the fly, BUT ...

He can't recognize a pitch and can't hit a fastball to save his f'n life! For someone with supposedly elite bat speed, I can't remember the last time I saw him smoke a fastball for a hit. His last at-bat last night was laughable, swinging so awkwardly at a ball that almost hit him that he nearly fell down.

Thank God Moleziak's reign of terror is almost at an end. Can anyone point to a worse player, present or past, who got as much playing time? Or has there been a bigger bust as a Cardinal?

I know he's only 23 and there's still time but wow does it look ugly right now...

[dugoutrex]

He's a bit shy in at-bats to qualify as a full-time player. But if he did, his .576 OPS would make him dead last against those players who do.

In my 20 years of being an avid baseball fan, I can't remember seeing a worse hitter. Probably because no one this bad ever gets so much playing time.

I'd like to say I feel for the kid because a lot of this is definitely on Mo and Co for skipping AAA, rushing him, and within a month of his MLB debut, saying he needs to change his swing on the fly, BUT ...

He can't recognize a pitch and can't hit a fastball to save his (Ef'En) life! For someone with supposedly elite bat speed, I can't remember the last time I saw him smoke a fastball for a hit. His last at-bat last night was laughable, swinging so awkwardly at a ball that almost hit him that he nearly fell down.

Thank God Moleziak's reign of terror is almost at an end. Can anyone point to a worse player, present or past, who got as much playing time? Or has there been a bigger bust as a Cardinal?

I know he's only 23 and there's still time but wow does it look ugly right now...

and ... we've been seeing this for 3 years now!

[blackinkbiz]

He's a bit shy in at-bats to qualify as a full-time player. But if he did, his .576 OPS would make him dead last against those players who do.

In my 20 years of being an avid baseball fan, I can't remember seeing a worse hitter. Probably because no one this bad ever gets so much playing time.

I'd like to say I feel for the kid because a lot of this is definitely on Mo and Co for skipping AAA, rushing him, and within a month of his MLB debut, saying he needs to change his swing on the fly, BUT ...

He can't recognize a pitch and can't hit a fastball to save his (Ef'En) life! For someone with supposedly elite bat speed, I can't remember the last time I saw him smoke a fastball for a hit. His last at-bat last night was laughable, swinging so awkwardly at a ball that almost hit him that he nearly fell down.

Thank God Moleziak's reign of terror is almost at an end. Can anyone point to a worse player, present or past, who got as much playing time? Or has there been a bigger bust as a Cardinal?

I know he's only 23 and there's still time but wow does it look ugly right now...

and ... we've been seeing this for 3 years now!

To be fair, his rookie campaign looked nothing like the abomination we've suffered through the last 2 years. He was terrible in RF, but his rookie year is probably one of the top-20 of all-time hitting seasons for a 20-year-old rookie. I honestly can't remember if he was either hitting the notorious outside breaking pitch that's become his downfall or if he simply hadn't been exposed yet, but he seemed to have so much promise, which is why the Cards deserve a LOT of the blame for this tragedy.

[okcardfan]

Short answer to question: Probably.

[rockondlouie]

Pre All-Star break:
60 wRC+

Post All-Star break:
66 wRC+

Season:
62+ wRC+

If he's not the worst player, then it wouldn't take long to find him at the bottom of the list.

[blackinkbiz]

Pre All-Star break:
60 wRC+

Post All-Star break:
66 wRC+

Season:
62+ wRC+

If he's not the worst player, then it wouldn't take long to find him at the bottom of the list.

Is there a list that shows the stats/rankings for all MLB players, qualified and/or unqualified?

I'm sure I could find one but being a dev, if I start pouring through stats I get distracted and sometimes go down a rabbit hole I can get stuck in for days. lol

[rockondlouie]

Pre All-Star break:
60 wRC+

Post All-Star break:
66 wRC+

Season:
62+ wRC+

If he's not the worst player, then it wouldn't take long to find him at the bottom of the list.

Is there a list that shows the stats/rankings for all MLB players, qualified and/or unqualified?

I'm sure I could find one but being a dev, if I start pouring through stats I get distracted and sometimes go down a rabbit hole I can get stuck in for days. lol

https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders/major-league

[Talkin' Baseball]

Orioles fans might want a word with you about Coby Mayo. Like Walker he is a big guy (6'4" 230 lb), top 10 MLB prospect supposed to be a slugger. He has hit .193 so far this year with a .622 OPS. Mayo has struck out 75 times in 249 plate appearances so far. Last season in 17 games he hit (if you can call it that) .098 with a .293 OPS. He's giving Walker a run for his money as the worst player in MLB. He is a righty bat and plays 1B/3B. Curiosity question- would you trade Walker for Mayo?

[ClassicO]

Of the 267 MLB players with over 300 ABs, he's 266th in OPS and 263rd in wRC+. So he's in the top 3 or 4.

[rockondlouie]

Orioles fans might want a word with you about Coby Mayo. Like Walker he is a big guy (6'4" 230 lb), top 10 MLB prospect supposed to be a slugger. He has hit .193 so far this year with a .622 OPS. Mayo has struck out 75 times in 249 plate appearances so far. Last season in 17 games he hit (if you can call it that) .098 with a .293 OPS. He's giving Walker a run for his money as the worst player in MLB. He is a righty bat and plays 1B/3B. Curiosity question- would you trade Walker for Mayo?

Yikes

But Jordan is still worse by wRC+.

Mayo
+74 wRC+

Walker
+63 wRC+

Why not, both have sucked and a change of scenery might do them good.

[swatski]

I feel terrible for the young man.

[JuanAgosto]

How was he the #1 rated prospect?

[cardstatman]

Michael Toglia?

[blackinkbiz]

How was he the #1 rated prospect?

Because in 2022, at the young age of 20--which made him WAY above the curve--he was one of the best hitters all year in AA and Fall League. And then during the first couple weeks of Spring Training in 23, when most teams are just feeding their youngest pitchers to the wolves to see what they've got, Jordan excelled because it was pitching he'd seen before.

That led Mozeliak, who has earned the reputation as one of the worst talent assessors in MLB, to foolishly promote him to MLB despite the fact they apparently knew Jordan's ground ball propensity would lead to far too many ground balls and apparently, would need modification, which they somehow thought a 20-year-old who had yet to fail at any level would be able to do WHILE learning a new defensive position at the MLB level.

Compound this with the unpopular firing of Mike Schildt, Mo's newest blunder, Oli, had just singlehandedly put the kibosh on the Cards postseason 6 months ago when he thought pulling an unhittable pitcher should be pulled after 5.1 IP and 75 pitches. Additionally, that same genius manager thought getting 2 innings out of a closer who had just jammed a throwing finger 3 days ago was also a good idea. That all blew up in Oli's face, which thus blew up in Mo's face, and combining that with the fact that Alcantra, Gallen, and Arozarena were now All-Stars, Cy Young winners, or postseason legends, Mo's precious ego couldn't handle the blowback he was facing.

Thus, he promoted this 20-year old kid to MLB to try and distract the fans with "the next big thing" to restore his tarnished reputation. As we've seen, it's been all downhill since Game 1 against the Phillies in 2022.

So, the majority of blame likely lies with the Cardinals, but Jordan's not helping himself at all either.

[JuanAgosto]

How was he the #1 rated prospect?

Because in 2022, at the young age of 20--which made him WAY above the curve--he was one of the best hitters all year in AA and Fall League. And then during the first couple weeks of Spring Training in 23, when most teams are just feeding their youngest pitchers to the wolves to see what they've got, Jordan excelled because it was pitching he'd seen before.

That led Mozeliak, who has earned the reputation as one of the worst talent assessors in MLB, to foolishly promote him to MLB despite the fact they apparently knew Jordan's ground ball propensity would lead to far too many ground balls and apparently, would need modification, which they somehow thought a 20-year-old who had yet to fail at any level would be able to do WHILE learning a new defensive position at the MLB level.

Compound this with the unpopular firing of Mike Schildt, Mo's newest blunder, Oli, had just singlehandedly put the kibosh on the Cards postseason 6 months ago when he thought pulling an unhittable pitcher should be pulled after 5.1 IP and 75 pitches. Additionally, that same genius manager thought getting 2 innings out of a closer who had just jammed a throwing finger 3 days ago was also a good idea. That all blew up in Oli's face, which thus blew up in Mo's face, and combining that with the fact that Alcantra, Gallen, and Arozarena were now All-Stars, Cy Young winners, or postseason legends, Mo's precious ego couldn't handle the blowback he was facing.

Thus, he promoted this 20-year old kid to MLB to try and distract the fans with "the next big thing" to restore his tarnished reputation. As we've seen, it's been all downhill since Game 1 against the Phillies in 2022.

So, the majority of blame likely lies with the Cardinals, but Jordan's not helping himself at all either.

I tend to think Walker was rushed because Mo was too lazy to acquire a MLB caliber outfielder. Walker became a necessity.

[rightthinker4]

He's a bit shy in at-bats to qualify as a full-time player. But if he did, his .576 OPS would make him dead last against those players who do.

In my 20 years of being an avid baseball fan, I can't remember seeing a worse hitter. Probably because no one this bad ever gets so much playing time.

I'd like to say I feel for the kid because a lot of this is definitely on Mo and Co for skipping AAA, rushing him, and within a month of his MLB debut, saying he needs to change his swing on the fly, BUT ...

He can't recognize a pitch and can't hit a fastball to save his (Ef'En) life! For someone with supposedly elite bat speed, I can't remember the last time I saw him smoke a fastball for a hit. His last at-bat last night was laughable, swinging so awkwardly at a ball that almost hit him that he nearly fell down.

Thank God Moleziak's reign of terror is almost at an end. Can anyone point to a worse player, present or past, who got as much playing time? Or has there been a bigger bust as a Cardinal?

I know he's only 23 and there's still time but wow does it look ugly right now...

Don’t know if he’s the worse, but he’s among them.