St. Louis Cardinals Recall Jordan Walker, Designate Tommy Pham For Assignment

A day after placing Tommy Pham on waivers, the St. Louis Cardinals designated the veteran slugger for assignment to make room for former top prospect Jordan Walker.

Apr 1, 2024; San Diego, California, USA; St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Jordan Walker (18) reacts after a catch to end the fifth inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. / Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

The St. Louis Cardinals have recalled outfielder Jordan Walker from Triple-A Memphis, the team announced Friday afternoon.

To make room for Walker, the Cardinals designated outfielder Tommy Pham for assignment. St. Louis reportedly placed Pham on waivers Thursday, and while he was allowed to remain on the active roster in the meantime, Walker's arrival officially marked the end of his reunion with the Cardinals.

Walker is starting in right field and batting seventh in Friday's series opener against the New York Yankees.

Roster Move: OF Jordan Walker has been recalled from Memphis (AAA).

OF Tommy Pham has been designated for assignment. pic.twitter.com/dMCRXNpW2f

— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) August 30, 2024

Entering the 2023 season, Walker was pegged as the No. 1 prospect in the Cardinals' farm system and the No. 4 prospect in all of baseball. He made good on that praise by batting .276 with 16 home runs, 51 RBI and a .787 OPS across 117 games his rookie year, but he only managed to post a -0.1 WAR due to his lackluster defensive metrics.

While Walker started 2024 on the Cardinals' Opening Day roster, it didn't take long for him to get sent down to the minors. Walker was batting just .155 with a .497 OPS when he got demoted on April 24, and he wouldn't return to the big leagues until four months later.

Walker appeared in four games for St. Louis earlier this month, going 1-for-11 with a walk in that span. On the whole this season, the 22-year-old is batting .145 with zero home runs, four RBI, a .460 OPS and -0.8 WAR.

In 84 games with Triple-A Memphis this year, Walker is hitting .263 with nine home runs, 37 RBI and a .753 OPS. He had taken his game to the next level since his most recent demotion, though, batting .348 with an .835 OPS over his last six appearances.

Pham, meanwhile, is looking to land with a new team before the Sept. 1 postseason roster eligibility deadline. The 36-year-old hit .266 with a .710 OPS in his 70 games with the White Sox earlier this season, then saw his batting average and OPS drop to .206 and .653, respectively, across 23 games with the Cardinals.

Still, Pham is a .313 hitter with an .846 OPS in his playoff career, posting up six home runs, 10 RBI and six stolen bases across 31 appearances.

Pham can still be claimed off waivers, or he will be released and attempt to sign with another club in the next few days.

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