Lars

Nootbaar

Nootbaar’s home run was his 12th of the year. He hit a solo shot off Landen Roupp in the third inning. The Cardinals rallied in the inning and Nootbaar capped it off with a two-run triple. While he had a slow start to the year after returning from injury, he’s ending the year on a high note hitting .323 with four home runs and 16 RBI in September.

Nootbaar hit a solo homer in the first off Kyle Freeland, and drove in another run with a double. The 27-year-old got off to a slow start after returning from injury, but he’s reminded fantasy managers that there is some upside in his bat with a .949 OPS in the month of September.

With the Cardinals facing a left-handed starting pitcher for the second day in a row, Burleson will take a seat for the second straight day. Lars Nootbaar will be starting in left field and Ivan Herrera will start at DH.

Nootbaar momentarily brought the Cardinals even with his seventh inning homer. He scorched it too at 110.2 MPH. He’s finally found his footing of late with an .885 OPS and just two more strikeouts than walks over his last 30 games. Better late than never, right?

Since Thomas Saggese was called up earlier this week, he has started every single game with the Cardinals rotating out another player in the lineup each game. One game Masyn Winn sat, the next game Lars Nootbaar sat, and now Brendan Donovan will sit. It’s a bit of a frustrating situation for fantasy managers because you’ll never know who will sit in which game.

Nootbaar’s home run was his ninth of the year. He hit a two-run shot off Ron Marinaccio in the ninth inning. Nootbaar cleared the bases with a double to right field that Juan Soto should’ve caught. He has a hit in 13 of his last 15 games. Nootbaar’s 16-for-54 (.296) with two home runs and 11 RBI in that time. He’s hitting .239 with a .722 OPS and 34 RBI on the season.

Nootbaar needed a moment like this. It was just a little seeing-eye single that squirted through the hole, but it plated two when the Cardinals were down by one in the ninth inning and sent them to victory. Otherwise, Nootbaar has been dreadful this season with eight homers, five stolen bases, and a .234 batting average in 78 games.

It’ll be Victor Scott II in center field, with Lars Nootbaar and Brendan Donovan in the corners, and Alec Burleson at designated hitter, on Saturday night at Busch Stadium. Walker has gone 1-for-8 with three strikeouts in three games since returning to the majors earlier this week after an extended hot streak at Triple-A Memphis that coincided with some mechanical adjustments to his swing. The 22-year-old former top prospect is unlikely to carve out enough consistent playing time in the Cardinals’ crowded outfield mix to make a significant impact for fantasy managers down the home stretch, but he’s a name to watch heading into next year.

With the Reds throwing left-hander Andrew Abbott, it will be Walker in right field, Victor Scott II in center field, and Tommy Pham in left field. Brendan Donovan will also play second base, which means all of Nolan Gorman, Alec Burleson, and Lars Nootbaar will shift to the bench. Reports have suggested that the Cardinals plan to primarily play Walker against lefties to start, and they have really struggled against left-handed pitching this season, so today’s lineup is not great news for Burleson, Nootbaar, and Gorman who could all be pushed into strong side platoons and not full-time roles.

Nootbaar hit his sixth homer of the season in the second inning off Michael Wacha to give the Cardinals an early 1-0 lead. It was his first home run since being activated off the 10-day IL on July 8, as Nootbaar dealt with an oblique injury that he suffered in late May, which saw him miss more than a month of action. Nootbaar didn’t hit well during his 13-game rehab assignment, going 3-for-17 in Triple-A before making his return. This solid night at the plate should serve as a nice confidence booster, but we’ll want to see the hits strung together on a more consistent basis before considering him a viable option in fantasy.