(Photo credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images)

Jordan Walker entered the season on a mission -- to finally show consistency and become an important part of the St. Louis Cardinals' lineup.

So far, so good.

In his fourth season in the majors, the 24-year-old boasts a .303 batting average, .360 on-base percentage and .566 slugging percentage through 64 games, a marked improvement from last year, when he had a .215/.278/.306 slash line in 111 appearances.

'I want to have a better year than I had last (year),' Walker said. 'I don't know if I wanted to prove everybody wrong. I want to show what I can do.'

He'll look to keep his strong season going when the visiting Cardinals bid for a sweep of the New York Mets in the finale of a three-game series on Thursday afternoon.

Walker is riding a seven-game hitting streak. He extended his run by going 2-for-5 with four RBIs in Wednesday's 9-2 victory over the Mets. One of his hits came in the fourth inning, when he connected for his team-leading 17th home run of the season, a three-run shot that increased St. Louis' lead to 7-0.

That set a career high for Walker, who was the 21st overall pick by the Cardinals in the 2020 MLB Draft. He notched his previous best of 16 during his rookie season in 2023.

He also leads the Cardinals -- who have won six games in a row -- with 52 RBIs.

'Walker deserves 100 percent of the credit,' St. Louis manager Oliver Marmol said. 'This game is hard. He is the one going out there and actually putting it together, having an approach and being consistent. To go from getting beat up the last couple of years (he batted only .201 in 2024) to where he is at mentally and physically at the moment, he deserves the credit.'

Right-hander Hunter Dobbins (1-0, 2.77 ERA) will start on Thursday for the Cardinals. He has faced the Mets once in his career, last season as a member of the Boston Red Sox. He gave up one run on five hits in 4 2/3 innings in a no-decision.

New York, meanwhile, will look for a better outing on the mound after going through four pitchers in a bullpen game in Wednesday's loss.

Austin Warren was the opener but was lifted after the first inning, when he allowed two runs on a pair of hits and two walks. David Peterson took over in the second and was tagged for six runs on seven hits over 3 2/3 innings.

'I look at him as a guy that we're going to need to get big outs for us,' Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. 'I'm confident in Peterson, even though it's been hard for him. We'll continue to trust him.'

New York has been outscored 16-2 through the first two games of the series.

'It starts on the mound, with starting pitching,' Mendoza said. 'We haven't done that.'

Right-hander Christian Scott (2-0, 2.50) will start for the Mets in the series finale.

Scott, who has yet to face the Cardinals in his career, has won his past two starts. Most recently, he held the San Diego Padres to three hits with three strikeouts in 5 2/3 scoreless innings of a 5-0 victory on Friday.

--Field Level Media