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When he’s stepped to the plate in each of his at-bats since coming back from the injured list with a different stance and swing, Cardinals right fielder Jordan Walker said he’s kept two concepts in mind:

“That’s getting low and my body going towards the ball,� Walker said Saturday night. “Everything else should take care of itself.�

With the more closed-off stance he used rehab at-bats to develop, Walker has produced a .303 batting average and five doubles in 33 at-bats since he was activated from the IL on July 18. With that has come a hard-hit rate of 58% as he’s produced 13 hard-hit balls in play, per Statcast.

The latest flash of hard contact came during Walker’s at-bat in the second inning of the Cardinals’ loss to the Padres on Saturday at Busch Stadium. Walker drove a cutter by starter Randy Vasquez over center fielder Jackson Merrill’s head for a double that had a 109.2 mph exit velocity and produced the Cardinals’ lone run in a 3-1 loss at Busch Stadium.

Walker’s double was his ninth ball in play with an exit velocity at or above 100 mph in nine games back from an IL stay caused by appendicitis. It provides another example of the results his stance change could yield.

“Getting my weight towards the ball and not away from it,� said Walker, who singled to center field in his first at-bat of Sunday’s series finale vs. San Diego. “I think that when I get myself in a good position to hit, then it just helps me be able to drive that ball up the middle a little easier instead of going off the ball and trying to stay on it when my body is going away from it. When my body is going to it, it just kind of naturally stays up the middle.�

During Walker’s rehab assignment, the 23-year-old right fielder worked with Cardinals minor league coaches in Class AA Springfield (Missouri), including minor league hitting coordinator Russ Steinhorn and Springfield hitting coach Casey Chenoweth. Walker played in 10 games for Springfield to allow him to build comfort with the adjustments.

Walker was hitting .210 and slugging .295 in 55 games before appendicitis sidelined him in late June. His recent surge, which includes a .455 slugging percentage in 33 at-bats, has helped him raise his batting average to .225 and allowed him to have “more room for error� when offering at pitching.

“It’s been more consistent because of the path,� Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Sunday morning. “I think he has more room for error, meaning his bat is not in and out of the zone where his timing has to be perfect. Therefore, even mishits have a trajectory that could lead to hits. And then when he’s on time, then you get some of those line drives we saw on the road and last night, where it’s just really hard contact through the big part of the field.�

Receiving regular at-bats upon his return while the likes of Nolan Gorman (lower back pain) and Lars Nootbaar (left costochondral sprain) are absent because of IL stints, Walker’s five doubles in his previous 33 at-bats surpassed his doubles total (four) in 176 at-bats before his second IL stay.

The early returns from the swing changes provide a launching point for Walker’s power to surge.

“I do, but I don’t think you have to search for them,� Marmol said of Walker’s home run potential. “I think you need to create a path that works and then add speed to it. I’m not worried about him hitting homers at the moment. I think that’ll be part of the progression.�

Fedde traded to Braves

The Cardinals on Sunday traded pitcher Erick Fedde and cash considerations to the Atlanta Braves for a player to be named later or cash considerations.

Fedde, 32, was designated for assignment by the Cardinals on Wednesday after a rough stretch ballooned his ERA to 5.22 and sunk his record to 3-10 through 20 starts this season. Fedde’s designation for assignment cleared a spot for rookie Michael McGreevy to join the Cardinals rotation.

A year ago, the Cardinals acquired Fedde from the White Sox in a three-team trade that brought Tommy Pham back to ÃÛÑ¿´«Ã½ alongside Fedde and sent Tommy Edman and a teenage pitching prospect to the Dodgers.

Jay comments on scuffle

After benches and dugouts emptied during the ninth inning Saturday, the only person ejected from the scuffle was Cardinals assistant coach Jon Jay.

Jay could be seen exchanging words with Padres third baseman Manny Machado, a fellow Miami-area native and once a friend of Jay, after Machado was hit by a pitch from rookie right-hander Andre Granillo. Machado responded to what appeared to be something Jay said, but the two were separated as some light pushing and shoving began between the two teams.

Machado was walked down the first base line by Willson Contreras, the latter of whom said he looked to calm tensions.

“I shouldn’t have said anything,� Jay said Sunday morning to Post-Dispatch reporter Derrick Goold.

Extra bases

Gorman (lower back pain) is expected to begin a rehab assignment Tuesday with Class AA Springfield, Marmol said.

• There was no set date for when Nootbaar (left costochondral sprain) to begin a rehab assignment, but the hope is he begins one at some point next week. Nootbaar has continued to take swings off a hitting tee and through soft toss while also going through defensive work.