Jordan Walker honors Jackie Robinson

While admitting “I don’t know how I would have fared in those times,” St. Louis Cardinals rookie outfielder Jordan Walker honored Jackie Robinson for helping him become a Major League Baseball player.

“He kept going through it, and not only able was he able to get through it, he did a really good job of playing baseball and was a superstar athlete,” Walker said of Robinson’s daily challenges following the Cardinals 6-3 Jackie Robinson Day loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.

“The things said about you, and said at you, while on the baseball field – and to still able to perform is truly something special.”

Walker showed he is special by tying an MLB record with his 12-game hitting streak to begin the season. He tied a record set in the late 1800s by Eddie Murphy for compiling the hitting streak while 20 years old or younger.

Through Saturday, Walker had started all the Cardinals’ 15 games, and was hitting .273 with two home runs and eight RBIS.

While Black players participated in Major League Baseball before Robinson, the game would become segregated and remain that way for decades until Robinson played for the Brooklyn Dodgers on May 15, 1947.

“I’ll never have to experience {what Robinson did] because of him,” Walker said. “I’ve talked with my parents about how much he changed the game for me, and the ability he has given me to play baseball. This is truly a special day.”