Lars Nootbaar Fantasy Stats

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar (rest) is out of the starting lineup ahead of Friday's game against the Chicago Cubs. This appears to be a regular rest day for Nootbaar, with the Cubs sending southpaw David Peterson to the mound. Nootbaar has started in 11 straight games, so he could use a rest day. In his place, Jose Fermin will cover left field and bat seventh on Friday. Due to injuries, Nootbaar has only played in 23 games this season. He's slashing .300/.387/.463 with two home runs and eight RBI in 93 plate appearances. He could be an under-the-radar deep league addition at the moment.

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar is still ramping up after his delayed start to the season, but he's shown enough signs to be a nice pickup if you need outfield depth. He seems fully recovered from the surgery he had on both his heels and has hit .341 over his last 12 games with three doubles, a triple, and a home run, boosting him to a .410 wOBA and a .953 OPS. Nootbaar hasn't stolen a base yet in his 17 games, but his power and run production are back. He has a 55.6% hard-hit rate and 13.3% barrel rate since returning and makes solid contact, especially against righties. The 28-year-old lefty won't be hitting leadoff after the emergence of JJ Wetherholt, but he still has enough thump in his bat to be a solid producer from the middle of the order for a surprisingly productive Cardinals' offense.

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar did not make his 2026 debut until June 5 after having offseason surgery on both heels. However, the 28-year-old has performed well since his return, hitting .269/.371/.442 with two home runs, seven RBI, and 10 runs scored across 62 plate appearances. The lefty-swinging Nootbaar posted a .580 OPS against left-handed pitching in 2025 and has logged just 11 plate appearances against southpaws so far in 2026, so he profiles as a big-side platoon bat. Still, Nootbaar has been a productive player when healthy. He owns a career 12.9% walk rate across over 2,000 big-league plate appearances. He's also logged a double-digit barrel rate and a hard-hit rate over 50% since the start of the 2025 season. If he can avoid the injury bug the rest of the way, Nootbaar should be a solid source of power and counting stats for fantasy managers to target on the waiver wire.

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar didn't make his 2026 season debut until June 5 after having surgery on both of his heels in the offseason. The 28-year-old left-handed-hitting outfielder has appeared in 12 games and has gone 11-for-41 (.268) with two home runs, two doubles, six RBI, seven runs scored, seven walks, and 13 strikeouts in his 49 plate appearances. He has only had nine plate appearances against lefty pitchers, though, and he was out of the starting lineup again on Thursday against the Kansas City Royals for the third time that the Cardinals have faced a traditional southpaw starter. Nootbaar has teased multi-category upside in his first five seasons in the big leagues, but injuries have held him back, and he's never exceeded 14 home runs, 48 RBI, or 11 stolen bases for the Red Birds. The Cardinals are most likely easing Nootbaar in this year after his long absence, so he won't necessarily be in a strict platoon going into the second half of the season. With better health in both of his feet, Nootbaar could finally be ready to break out the rest of the way, making him worth a waiver flier in deeper mixed fantasy leagues. He's rostered in just 5% of Yahoo leagues right now.

The St. Louis Cardinals activated outfielder Lars Nootbaar (heels) from the 60-day injured list on Friday and optioned infielder Thomas Saggese to Triple-A Memphis in a corresponding move, according to Tamar Sher. Nootbaar will finally be making his 2026 season debut after he had surgery in the offseason to fix deformities in both of his heels. The 28-year-old left-handed-hitting outfielder should play regularly in St. Louis against right-handers, although the Cardinals could initially ease him back into the fold after his long layoff from major-league games. In 12 minor-league games, Nootbaar slashed .257/.409/.543 with three home runs. The former eighth-round pick in 2018 out of USC has teased fantasy managers in his five years in the big leagues, but perhaps he can break out if he can put his foot injuries behind him once and for all. In his first five years with the Red Birds, Nootbaar slashed .242/.341/.406 with a .747 OPS, 58 home runs, 194 RBI, and 28 stolen bases in 527 games played. In deep-mixed leagues, Nootbaar is worth a look on the waiver wire as outfield depth now that he's back. He's currently rostered in just 2% of Yahoo leagues.

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar (heels), who is expected to come off the 60-day injured list to make his 2026 season debut on Friday against the division-rival Cincinnati Reds, hit his third minor-league home run on Wednesday in his 12th rehab game, per MLB reporter John Denton. Nootbaar had double heel surgery last October and has yet to play for the Cardinals this year. The 28-year-old left-handed-hitting outfielder has teased power upside in the past, but he hasn't taken advantage of regular playing time in St. Louis has also been limited by injuries along the way. The former eighth-rounder in 2018 out of USC has slashed .242/.341/.406 with a .747 OPS in his five major-league seasons (all with the Red Birds). Fantasy managers in mixed leagues should probably take a wait-and-see approach on Nootbaar as he returns to the big leagues following a long absence. He's currently rostered in just 2% of Yahoo leagues, but he should be playing regularly in St. Louis upon his return, at least against right-handed pitching.

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar (heels) was placed on the 60-day injured list on Wednesday. This means the left-handed hitter will be out until at least late May as he recovers from offseason surgery to both of his heels. The team was hoping to avoid a 60-day IL stint, but instead, Nathan Church, Thomas Saggese, and Jose Fermin will compete for playing time in left field to begin the year. When Nootbaar returns, he does offer some pop after having reached at least 12 home runs the last four seasons, along with a solid OBP thanks to a strong walk rate, but you may be able to find higher-upside options on the waiver wire even when he's back in the lineup.

St. Louis Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom said that outfielder Lars Nootbaar (heels) will be evaluated this week for a potential placement on the 60-day injured list, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. If Nootbaar lands on the 60-day IL, he won't be eligible to make his 2026 season debut until late May, so the Cardinals would like to avoid that if possible. The 28-year-old left-handed-hitting outfielder had surgery to fix deformities in both of his heels in the offseason, and he's just not ready yet. The good news is that he's scheduled to take batting practice with minor-leaguers in camp on Tuesday. Nootbaar has teased fantasy managers for years, but he has never delivered, and now his dynasty/keeper stock is at a new low. Despite playing in a career-high 135 games in 2025, Nootbaar disappointed with a .234/.325/.361 slash line with a career-low .686 OPS, 13 homers, and 48 RBI in 583 plate appearances. Look for Nathan Church, Thomas Saggesse, and Jose Fermin to compete for playing time in left field for the Cardinals to begin the season.

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar (heel) has started his running progression this weekend as the team prepares to leave their spring training headquarters in Florida in preparation for the start of the regular season next week. Nootbaar will officially open the season on the injured list, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The 28-year-old had offseason surgery on deformities in both of his heels, and there's no timetable for when he'll be ready to make his 2026 season debut. His injury has opened the door for Nathan Church to win a spot on the Opening Day roster in St. Louis' outfield. Nootbaar, an eighth-round pick in 2018 out of USC, has teased fantasy managers with his potential, but he just has never been able to put together a full season and continues to suffer setback after injury setback. In a career-high 135 games in 2025, he disappointed with a .234/.325/.361 slash line, a career-low .686 OPS, 13 homers, 48 RBI, 68 runs, and four steals. Fantasy managers in 12-team leagues should take their chances on someone else as a bench stash.

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar (heels) still has no timeline for a return to full baseball activities, according to Jeff Jones of the Belleville News. Nootbaar has been able to hit and throw, but he's just now moving into being able to run without assistance. The 28-year-old will continue to run on an anti-gravity treadmill in camp after having surgery in early October on both of his heels to address deformities. The Cardinals are unlikely to rush Nootbaar, so the expectation is that he will not be ready to go on Opening Day in late March. Nootbaar played a career-high 135 games in 2025 and disappointed offensively, slashing .234/.325/.361 with a career-worst .686 OPS, 13 homers, 48 RBI, 68 runs, and four steals in 583 plate appearances. His batted-ball metrics have always teased more -- he had a career-best 50% hard-hit rate and 10.2% barrel rate in 2025 -- but he's rarely been healthy and has yet to put it all together. Nootbaar needs to get healthy and finally break through to jump into the top-100 outfield rankings.