Aug 20, 2025; Miami, Florida, USA; St. Louis Cardinals center fielder Lars Nootbaar (21) drives in a run on a ground rule double in the fifth inning against the Miami Marlins at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

Cardinals Fan Favorite May Have Played His Way Back Into 2026 Plans

Originally posted on St. Louis Cardinals on SI
By Curt Bishop | Last updated Aug 24, 2025 2:00 PM ET

The St. Louis Cardinals have fallen out of postseason contention with just over a month to go in the regular season. They enter Sunday's series finale with the Tampa Bay Rays at 64-66, 5 1/2 games back in the National League Wild Card race and 17 back in the NL Central of the Milwaukee Brewers. A rebuild will soon begin and kick off a new era of Cardinals baseball.

However, just because 2025 is a lost season doesn't mean there haven't been some good moments for St. Louis. In fact, they have watched several players take some big steps forward in 2025. Lately, outfielder Lars Nootbaar has been performing well.

After a lot of trade speculation, Nootbaar is silencing the critics and performing well out of the leadoff spot for the Cardinals. Josh Jacobs of Redbird Rants believes that Nootbaar might be forcing his way into the Cardinals plans for 2026.

Could Fan Favorite Be Forcing His Way Into Cards 2026 Plans?

Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

"Even just looking at the slash lines, extra-base hit outputs, and K/BB ratio, you'll see different versions of Nootbaar coming out during various stretches of the season. And if his last nine games are any indication, where he's posted a 162 wRC+, he may be sitting on a heater here that can really boost his overall numbers on the year," Jacobs wrote.

"Here's the funny thing about Nootbaar right now. If he finishes the year strong, he may be someone the Cardinals want to keep, or he may play himself into being a coveted asset for rival clubs this offseason."

Nootbaar is a curious case for the Cardinals. If he can stay healthy and keep hitting, the Cardinals may want to keep him. But it's always possible that he could increase his trade value and give the Cardinals a little something to work with as they try to decide who to keep and who to trade this coming offseason.

With Chaim Bloom taking over for John Mozeliak as president of baseball operations, things are going to be done differently, and the Cardinals will hopefully have finally picked a direction on where they want to go in the future.

Nootbaar might be a key piece of the puzzle for the future if he continues to hit like this.

It will be interesting to see what the Cardinals decide to do.

This article first appeared on St. Louis Cardinals on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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