The Cardinals have maintained this season is primarily about evaluating young players. It felt like a potential make-or-break year for Jordan Walker, in particular. Walker was viewed as an impact bat when he was a prospect. He impressed with a .276/.342/.445 showing with 16 homers as a 21-year-old rookie. That promising debut feels like an increasingly distant memory. Walker regressed to a .201/.253/.366 line in 51 major league games last year.
Argentina came out swinging in the first quarter, starting the game on an 11-0 run over the first four minutes. Meanwhile, it was a discombobulated, disjointed mess from the SMNT, especially on the offensive end as they didn't record a single FG in the first eight minutes of the game, missing their first eight attempts and turning it over three times.
Ben Johnson recognized that the Bears' offense underperformed during practice, stating that it was "sloppier than we were hoping it would be at this point," indicating unmet expectations.
"He had a fastball to hit and just got too big with the swing. Where all you need is a base hit right there... I think a little bit this series, and even that last game in Texas when he came back, there was a little over-aggressiveness."