Cardinals OF Jordan Walker leaves spring training game against Nationals with left knee pain

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Cardinals outfielder Jordan Walker left the team's split-squad game against the Nationals with left knee pain on Tuesday.

Walker departed from the game in the third inning. The team said he will undergo further evaluation.

The 22-year-old Walker, a former first-round pick, has long been considered one of the Cardinals' most talented prospects. But after hitting .276 with 16 homers and 51 RBIs in 117 games as a rookie, Walker substantially regressed last year, hitting just .202 with five homers and 20 RBIs in 51 games with the big-league club.

He wound up playing 85 games for Triple-A Memphis, hitting .263 with nine homers and 37 RBIs.

The Cardinals, who have missed the playoffs the past two season, are counting on players such as Walker to have bounceback years after doing little to augment the roster in the offseason. Walker's competing for a job alongside Lars Nootbaar and Michael Siani in an outfield that also includes Michael Helman, who was recently acquired from the Twins.

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