The Cardinals spent 2026 letting the young guys sort things out, and two players answered the call louder than anyone else: Jordan Walker and Alec Burleson.
St. Louis carried the second-youngest roster in baseball, averaging 26.2 years old, and that gave the front office a real look at what it has in its younger core. Walker and Burleson didn’t just hold their own - they turned in the kind of seasons that made them impossible to ignore.
Walker, especially, made a statement. After some people questioned whether he belonged on the Opening Day roster following a rough spring, he delivered the best season of his career.
The 24-year-old was an All-Star, won the Home Run Derby and became one of the brightest stories in baseball in 2026. He hit .269/.327/.466 with 29 home runs, 102 RBIs, 22 stolen bases and 33 doubles.
Burleson was every bit as important in his own lane. Once he moved to first base full-time with Willson Contreras out the door, he settled in and produced like a middle-of-the-order bat. The 27-year-old hit .279/.343/.473 with 26 home runs, 37 doubles and a league-leading 116 RBIs, making a strong case as the most underrated first baseman in the game.
That’s what makes the Cardinals’ offseason so interesting. Keeping both would clearly help the club in 2027.
But if St. Louis decided to shop one of them, the payoff could be huge.
Walker still has three seasons of team control left, and that combination of youth and production makes him a premium trade asset. At the same time, the Cardinals have to decide which version of him they believe in more: the player who struggled to adjust for three seasons, or the one who exploded in 2026. If there’s even a hint of doubt, now would be the moment to move him, while his value is sky-high.
Burleson’s case is nearly as strong, and maybe even a little more straightforward. He has two seasons of control left, and at 27, he’s older than Walker and closer to the window where a front office might cash in.
The Brendan Donovan return is the obvious template. St.
Louis landed Jurrangelo Cijntje, Tai Peete, Colton Ledbetter and two Competitive Balance Round B picks for Donovan, who had two seasons of control left and was coming off a good 2025. Walker and Burleson put up better numbers in 2026, and Burleson has the same amount of team control Donovan had.
Walker has even more. If one of the two were to move, Burleson might be the more likely candidate simply because of his age and shorter control window.
None of that means the Cardinals should deal them. But if St. Louis is looking for the player on the roster with the biggest combination of value and realism as a trade chip, Walker and Burleson are the clearest answers.
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What makes Hernandez worth watching now is how he fits into a catching depth chart that keeps getting more crowded with new possibilities. His performance in the Arizona Fall League has only added to the buzz, with teammates and evaluators pointing to the way his bat is trending as a reason to believe he could become a meaningful part of the Cardinals long-term plans. [Read more 🡒]