Home Run Derby Champion Jordan Walker Joins The Pat McAfee Show Live

From Georgia. I'm looking at him right. now. Got great chain on. Got some nice. sunglasses. He's got a new deal coming. He's also got seven figures cuz his bat. got real hot. Ladies and gentlemen, out. of St. Louis Cardinals Home Run Derby. champion, Jordan Walker. >> What's going on, guys? >> Congrats, man. That was awesome to. watch. And I. >> Appreciate it. >> I let off with talking about this cuz we. were there. You were a monster of a man. I mean, baseball players are so big. I. think we forget about that. Like. Schwarber,

5'10" or whatever. Everybody else, monster. That was our first time getting. to see you live. You put on a show. Everybody loved you. And what you did at. the end of that thing, ice cold, bro. Congratulations on that. >> Appreciate it, man. Thank you. >> And you know, big conversation now has. been your salary versus what you won. Going into that, and I I told the story. about me, I was a kicker and in high. school and I would put myself in a. position like, all right, if I make this. kick, somebody's going to walk up and. give me a million bucks. If I like. trying to put a little pressure on.

myself. Going into last night, knowing. that a million dollars on the line and. that you certainly have the ability to. do that. And then I saw you make it rain. to immediately afterwards. What was the. thought and when you get there and you. have to hit like six home runs with only. like three swings left, what is the. mindset? What's the mentality? Can you. just take us back to last night in your. special night? >> Yeah, man. I mean, it was crazy in all. honesty, man. Uh. The stadium's packed. Everybody's. booing, you know what I mean? Like, but. I never doubted myself, to be honest. with you. And then Schwarber put on an.

unreal performance. Um and all honesty, I I think I kind of. blacked out there and for real. [laughter]. And just. just took my swings and you know, did my. best. But it was definitely Schwarber. made it tough. >> Barry said it was the best Home Run. Derby he's ever seen. I mean, I. honestly, they they had the Barry. Bonds-Maguire one from 1996 running back. when it was in Philadelphia and it was. like empty park. It was in the middle of. the day. What the Home Run Derby has. become is an absolute spectacle. With. the new rules, nobody knew what it was. going to be. It's on Netflix. It's like. you're a huge piece of that being a.

massively successful night. You should. take a lot of pride in that, obviously. But, there's a couple home runs where. you wrist it. Like it looked like you. didn't even hit them clean. And And by. the way, I'm going to follow you for the. rest of your career, 24. You need to. Yeah, I cannot wait to watch you play. baseball going forward. But, was there a. couple that like you thought weren't. going to go out that got out? Is there. like a couple early where you're like, "Ooh, if that one's going out, this. could be a good night." Like Is there Is. there a little bit of that early in the. evening where you start feeling good. about the way the ball is jumping off. the bat or is that every night for you? And I just need to understand that.

>> No. >> [laughter]. >> No. You're definitely right about the. first one. Um there's a there's a couple. I hit low that I was like, "I don't. know." But, um when I snuck out of. there, I was like, "Okay, I got a. chance, you know what I'm saying? Let's. keep this thing going.". >> Okay. So, everybody talked about the. amount of money that you get paid. And I. think your contract's up at K. Good time. >> Yeah. >> Hell of a season right now. >> Yeah. Derby, yes. But, pretty good first. half, too. >> And yeah. >> And then we looked into your we looked. into a little bit and we started asking. people with the Cardinals. They're like, "Yeah, he's also going to be our first. like 30 for 30 guy that we've had. He's.

like the fastest guy we have." And I'm. like, "He's like 640, too. He's like. 610. I don't know how tall this guy is.". Uh so, obviously, the future very, very. bright. We talked to Schwarber. yesterday. We talked to Bryce Harper. yesterday. We talked to Skinny Al. yesterday. We talked to Miz. The way you. all hold All-Star Week and Home Run. Derby, I think is special. I think it's. very sweet. I think a lot of other. sports wish they still had that. For. you, being a part of the Home Run Derby, now being a Home Run Derby champion, does it feel as if you are carrying on a. tradition of baseball, of America's. pastime, whenever you're in it? And why.

do you think you baseball players have. so much respect for the spectacle that. is All-Star break and Home Run Derby. still? >> I mean, honestly, for me personally, I. mean, I've grown up living and breathing. baseball. That's my favorite sport, you. know, growing up. And my parents talked. about how I slept in my bat and my. glove. Um and I watched the Home Run. Derby when I was growing up, too. I. mean, All-Star game, everything like. that. It's been my dream to do it. So, being a part of it, man, it was just. special to me, you know? I mean, I don't. know if you can truly explain how much.

you love the game. Um so, I'm doing my best right now, but. being a part of that was unreal. And. then, especially against the greats and. future Hall of Famers um like Harper and. Schwarber as well. So, it's super cool. for that. >> Yeah, it feels like you're on your way. to that, too, as well, brother. Now, a. lot of [ __ ] has to happen. A lot of [ __ ]. has to happen, obviously. Baseball is. such a failing sport. Like, you have to. fail so much in baseball so to become. successful, which is crazy. Talk to the. boys about that last night, just the. amount of mental toughness that I don't. have to play that sport. You I strike. out in the first inning, I got to go. back in the third inning. >> [laughter]. >> I am still pissed. I I am still pissed.

from that entire thing. So, we can't. wait to watch you do your thing. AJ Hawk. has a question for you, Jordan. >> Yeah, Jordan, I'm wondering like your. prep as far as what you did getting. ready for this. Who did you talk to? You. don't have a whole lot of time, obviously, being in the middle of the. season. And also, your I guess your. swagger {slash} like comfortability. You're so comfortable in the box. They. talked about it on the broadcast a. bunch, just how comfortable and calm you. were. Was that something that you had a. plan going into? And obviously, you. executed it very well. >> Most absolute I mean, absolutely. I. mean, I think you have to be. I mean, Philly is I mean, they're brutal when.

you're the away team, but um. you know, they love their teams. And and. you know, you can't hate that, for sure. Um so, I knew it was going to be tough. going into it, especially, you know, up. against a guy like Schwarber. So, if I. wanted to win, I had to be calm. And I. had the best hype man possible. um with my teammates on the sidelines, too. So, it's been It was unreal. >> How was afterwards? You guys have a good. terrible time? >> [laughter]. >> It was a pretty good night. That's all. I'm going to say. >> [laughter]. >> And Dabo HAS A QUESTION FOR YOU, JORDAN.

>> YEAH, JORDAN, watching you, obviously, with those legends after talking about, you know, putting on the best. performance, Barry Bonds saying that to. your face. Who were some of those. players that you watched growing up that. you wanted to model your game after? You. talked about you eat, breathe, and slept. baseball. So, who were some of those. players you wanted to be like God you. grew up? >> So, coming out of Atlanta, I the third. baseman coming up? So, I want to be like. Chipper. For a while and then when Heyward. debuted. when I was I remember I was sitting out. in left field. It was it was unreal with. that too. So, then I was like, you know.

what? I want to be like him. So, those. are the two guys I remember just. watching growing up when I was a kid. >> So, Chipper's too white. You didn't want to. stick. >> [laughter]. >> Uh Diggs has a question for you, Jordano. >> Yeah, Jordan, like the Cardinals story. this year. I'm a Pirates fan so I follow. the NL Central closely. Like The Pirates. I know. I know. I know. But hey, I'M I'M A JJ Weatherholt. He's. a Pittsburgh guy so I follow it closely.

Like you guys in the young core, how. awesome has that been this season and. then going into the second half to carry. that along? >> Yeah, I mean Jake is a dog, honestly. I. mean, just a dog. He does everything the. right way. Honestly, if you talk about. composure, it's him. So, he sets the tone and you know, we. all get going from there. >> Yeah, it's West Virginia Mountaineer, Jordan. You know the deal. Okay, so baseball at this stand stage, I'm not going to ask you about you're 24. so you shouldn't say anything about the.

CBA negotiations cuz no offense, you. don't know [ __ ] about [ __ ] at this. stage. >> [laughter]. >> You said IT, NOT ME, MAN. >> BUT ALSO IT'S NOT like you to talk about. that. But we're at such an interesting. like it feels like pivot point for. baseball as a whole. Seemingly more pop like. >> Yes. >> I don't know what last night's numbers. are going to be but like everybody. wanted to be there. Building is sold. out. Everybody's tuned into baseball. But then the conversation immediately. goes to, yeah, the Dodgers though. The. Dodgers, the Dodgers. Who's going to. beat the Dodgers? Who's going to beat. the Dodgers? How do you guys view that.

with how long of a season is? When do. you want to get hot? And like when you. every team thinks we have enough to win. a World Series. Is it cuz like Joe. Thomas of the Cleveland Browns. he said whenever he went into the Hall. of in one of his interviews, he said. every season coming out of training. camp, I thought we were going to win the. Super Bowl. Like that is what we had. They went 0 and 16, I think, twice while. he was there. He thought they were going. to win Super Bowl. And I'm not saying. you guys are Cleveland Browns, but I'm. saying like every sport you have to have. an unrelenting. optimism about where your team is. You guys obviously have enough to go.

And that is every team feels that way or. in baseball is there some teams that. understand the deal or don't understand. the deal, if that makes sense in your. opinion? >> hope so. Um. because [snorts] I mean, everybody I've. met has been. unbelievably competitive. So, I mean, that was our thought coming out of. spring training and I'm sure that's. pretty much every other team's thought. coming out of spring training. Um. I feel like they wouldn't put the team. on the field if they didn't try their. best, so. >> Yeah, especially the Cardinals. organization so legendary. But it it it. it does feel like there's a lot of. disrespect to a lot of teams. >> Oh, yeah. >> Yeah. >> It's like, well, the Dodgers didn't go.

And it's like, well, who else? Like, >> It doesn't matter. >> It's like, well, I just watched 20. Yeah, amen. [laughter] Well, the Pirates. about to get that ass, BUT. I I I JUST WATCHED a 24-year-old guy. slap a home run and they're telling me. he's going to have 30 steals as well. It's like, yeah, they are not. It's. like, well, Dodgers though. It's like, okay. And I would like to get like I'm. thankful for you sharing your opinion on. us cuz that is how everybody talks about. MLB from the outside. I'm happy to hear. that it's like, nah, we're going. Pirates too last year. >> yeah, we're we're we're competitive. >> Yeah, everybody it the game season's so.

long. >> Absolutely. >> So, I don't know how you guys Like for. you, for the Home Run Derby, do you change your swing? Like are you. worried about the swing cuz isn't that. always the conversation for people that. do the Home Run Derby like are you. changing your swing there or do you. think that affects you going down the. road? Like how do you kind of deal with. that afterwards? >> Yeah, honestly, I didn't really think. about it too much. Um I wouldn't say. changing my swing. I just say I'm trying. to catch the ball a little bit more out. in front. Um. you know, during the season I'm usually. trying to go center field, you know, the. big part of the field, but Home Run. Derby you got to hit home runs. So, maybe just catch the ball a little bit.

more out front. Don't change too much. >> 20 swings. What was the Was there a hey, let's just make sure we get a good pitch. or when I get in a groove I'm going to. go cuz obviously we saw you do this one. here. You must have felt good. How much. are you thinking about that? >> Yeah, and I mean I want to get a good. pitch. That's the main thing. Um. but honestly just trying not to get. tired. That's when I get killed. I mean. I got I started, you know, then I hit. three like grounders or line drives in a. row. I got killed. I was tired, man. So. I had to slow that down and that was. really the goal. >> I wish you would have called ABS on your. guy.

>> [laughter]. >> No, Katie was money yesterday. Katie was. money. He's our guy, yeah. >> Huge deal to be the pitcher that wins. You have to perform. I mean you really. have to perform. Go ahead, Ty. >> Yeah, Jordan, we were you obviously. stole the show last night. We were down. on the field and I didn't see the. broadcast, but I saw afterwards like. your parents kind of stole the show on. the broadcast. They kept, you know, panning to them after you'd hit a homer. and they were going nuts with everyone. How special was it cuz I feel like that. that probably isn't that common where. someone gets to win the derby and their. parents are there in the crowd watching.

them be able to do that. Like how. special was that to have your family. there for such a massive night? >> I mean really special. But you know, I'm. used to them being there for me. They. come out whenever they can, you know. My. mom's a high school teacher. so it's tough for her to come out, but I. mean and she does. She shows out. My. grandma shows out. My dad obviously. shows out and I love having them, you. know, with me every step of the way. So. it was real special like I said that. moment with them. >> Backwards hat, Ken Griffey walk over. with his camera?

Did he come over and say hey, pretty. good, better [ __ ] WIN THIS THING? >> [laughter]. >> YOU LOOK COOL THOUGH. I mean the. backwards hat is always Do you have. chains on too? Do you have chains on. too? >> Chains every gives gifts from my family, friends, everything like that. So you. know, I had to wear it with me. >> Do you wear it during games too? You got. chains on during the game or no? >> yeah. It's kind of my way of keeping. them with me while I play. >> All right, we'll send you over some fake. jewelry to wear. >> [laughter]. >> I'll wear it.

>> Con may actually you're a millionaire. now just strictly off of one night. So, >> [laughter]. >> things got to be something nice. Go. ahead Conman. >> Yeah, Jordan I also do believe you know, especially with how you hit those home. runs to left field, you'd look great in. a Boston Red Sox uniform. So, [laughter]. let's keep that in mind. Let's just keep that in mind. You don't. have to comment on it. >> [laughter]. >> Just keep that in mind. But aside from that growing up, you said. you slept with a bat and glove, you. know, love baseball. Did you play any. other sports cuz I mean the guys told me. when you walked out to you know, in in. and out of the dugout, you know, staying.

hot. They're like this guy's the biggest. dude we've ever seen in our life. [laughter] Like. >> Giant. >> Yeah, did did any NFL or sorry, football. or you know, basketball coaches tell you. like hey, yeah, soccer. Hey, probably. not soccer but. >> [laughter]. >> But you know what, I I did I did play. soccer when I was real little but. it was mainly baseball, basketball. Um My high school coach, football coach. tried to get me on the team for the. longest time. I was a little caught up. with with baseball and basketball at the. time. Um but yeah, if I wasn't a baseball player, I'd for. sure try to be a hooper.

>> You still got a shot or no? >> Nah, it's a little broke right now but. we'll get that [laughter] lab zone. We'll get the lab zone. We'll get it. right. >> Actually, I I I don't think you need to. touch a basketball ever, brother. I feel. like you're figuring it out right now. Congratulations on last night. MLB's got to be very thankful for your. performance last night. Baseball. obviously in the same and the only. person who hated it was Schwarber. probably. No, but I I think even Philadelphia. would respect that. You walked into. their house and do that.

Yeah, this guy. [laughter] And I would. assume that some of the Johns just like. us like. That's one of the coldest things I've. seen. Like that that area is clutch. Actually, that stadium is known to be what? You. take it they're Philadelphia fans. Schwarber is who they all wanted to win, right? Schwarbomb. We need Schwarber. Last year he gets into hit off which. almost happened again. Eleven of 15. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, so. it's like you stepping into that. batter's box with all of that locking in.

and being able to handle your business, special brother. I think you got it all. right. >> it, man. >> Thank you for joining us. Enjoy yourself. over there. >> Appreciate it. I will. You know I will. I'll see y'all. >> You're the man. Ladies and gentlemen, Jordan Walker. July 13th, 2025, Jordan Walker played. his final game of rehab assignment for. double-A Springfield Cardinals. Had a. .526. 46 to you get it. July 13th, 2026, Jordan Walker won home run derby to cap. first half with 22 home runs, 74 RBIs in.

an 887. What is that? That's on. >> That's on base plus slugging. So yeah, he he was a first round pick. like a cornerstone of what the Cardinals. want to do and he wasn't great last year. and he is just This year he has been so. I mean, he made himself. Last night. obviously was a big part of it, but his. whole first half of the season like he's. he's going to make himself a lot of. money with the way he's played this. year. >> Everybody was happy for him. >> Yes. >> Like every All-Star. Not just the. Cardinals people. It's like obviously. everybody appreciated Schwarber putting.

on a show for the people. Everybody. loves Schwarber. I don't think there's. anybody that doesn't like Schwarber. either. But it was like watching a. 24-year-old in that moment showing up. and even the first round. >> Yeah. >> Like holy [ __ ]. >> it was easy off the bat early. >> Yeah. No doubters. >> Even the the host, I can't remember his. name, but he said that like after his. first home run, Jordan Walker's first. home run of the first round, he was. like, "Oh, that's. That was easy. That looked really easy.". is what he kind of said over the. stadium. >> Huge, man. >> Yeah. >> Massive. >> So on the way out, fist bumped him. >> That that I mean, >> It was like a fist bump at his table.

It was like yeah, it was really it was. like. >> He's about 6'6", too. >> Should have played quarterback. >> [music].