St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar is a budding MLB star, but his ceiling has been capped due to his troubles staying healthy so far in his career. For the Cardinals to feel confident they can depend on him in the future, the front office is looking for him to put together a full season.
Lars Nootbaar Needs to Stay Healthy for Cardinals in 2025
Several IL Stints Each of the Past Two Years
Nootbaar is known for being a charismatic teammate and a responsible at-bat. The Cardinals organization likes what they see from him when he is on the field. It’s the staying on the field that has held him back so far in his young career.
“Internally we discuss this a lot as well. Obviously, we do believe he is a very talented player,” said John Mozeliak, the Cardinals President of Baseball Operations, in a radio interview with KMOX Radio on Sunday. “One of the things we always talk about…is the ability to go pole to pole.”
In each of the last two seasons, Nootbaar has spent three separate stints on the injured list. The 27-year-old has had three full MLB seasons, and in each one, he played around two-thirds of the games. His high mark for games played was in 2023 with 117. However, Mozeliak said they are looking for him to be on the field closer to 150.
“That’s something that [Nootbaar] really has to focus on,” Mozeliak said Sunday. “Figuring out a way to keep his body healthy and a way to keep himself on the field.”
Health Could Dictate Career
Nootbaar’s injuries aren’t limited to one nagging issue. He has had an eclectic range of injuries including back, abdomen, oblique and rib issues. After the last two years of IL stints, the organization thinks health is the biggest barrier to him being a star in the league.
“For him, that’s definitely a big question mark in terms of what his career arc will ultimately look like,” Mozeliak said. “On the surface level, I really do think he’s got the talent to be a special player in this league.”
The Cardinals are entering a new phase as an organization. They are cutting payroll and focusing on developing young talent. Nootbaar fits with their timeline perfectly. The outfielder is being paid $2.8 million this year and is under club control until the 2028 season. He has already proven to be an asset at the major league level. He is entering his prime. If the Cardinals’ reset works, Nootbaar could play a huge role in it.
A Very Useful Bat
The left-handed hitting Nootbaar has proven to be useful in his career. Across four partial seasons, Nootbaar has slashed .246/.348/.425. He has shown some pop so far in his career, hitting at least a dozen home runs in each of the last three seasons. Factoring in the injuries, his 162-game average for home runs would be 19.
The thing Nootbaar does best is put together a good at-bat. Of players who had at least 300 MLB at-bats in 2024, Nootbaar chased balls out of the zone the least. His chase percentage was just 16.9 percent. This helped him have the eighth-best walk rate in the league at 12.8 percent.
Lowest Chase Rates pic.twitter.com/q8gDEol63X
— Thomas Nestico (@TJStats) January 2, 2025
When he swings, Nootbaar typically makes good contact. He was in the top 20 percentile of the league for having the lowest whiff percentage. He also was in the top 10 percentile of the league for hard-hit percentage. The combo of not swinging at bad pitches, making contact, and hitting the ball hard all above league average makes him a dangerous bat in the lineup.
Nootbaar can play all three outfield positions. According to Baseball Savant’s advanced stats, he is above league average in outfield range and in arm strength. If Lars Nootbaar stays healthy, he has All-Star potential.
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