The St. Louis Cardinals still have a few issues to resolve ahead of the 2026 season. While the situation in the outfield is starting to take shape, some uncertainties remain.
Popular player Lars Nootbaar underwent surgery on both heels after the 2025 season, putting his availability for Opening Day in doubt. This has created opportunities for younger players to compete for outfield roles during spring training.
Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch gave the latest update on Nootbaar, and while it is not surprising, it’s still disappointing for fans looking forward to the start of a new season.
Latest on Nootbaar
“The Cardinals have not yet officially said outfielder Lars Nootbaar will open the season on the injured list, but he’s yet to begin running on the field and there’s no schedule set for him to appear in a game before the team leaves Florida,” Goold reported on Tuesday. “Nootbaar is recovering from bilateral heel surgeries, and the Cardinals’ actions have been to prepare for someone else to be in left field for them as they open the season.”
Once again, this news isn’t terribly surprising, but if Nootbaar is still slow to recover from his heel surgeries, then it ultimately makes sense to start the season with him on the injured list. In that case, the logical choice to start in left field on opening day is Nelson Velazquez.
The Cardinals have also used Thomas Saggese and Jose Fermin out in left field some, so they have options. But Nootbaar appears to still be moving slowly towards his recovery, and it might be a while before fans get to see him out in left field at Busch Stadium.
The news is still disappointing for Cardinals fans, but starting him on the injured list may be the best course of action for the team so they can ensure that he comes back fully healthy and with no limits to his abilities.
Nootbaar hit .234/.325/.361 with 13 home runs, 48 RBI and a .686 OPS last season. He also spent considerable time on the injured list, so that could have certainly affected his performance at the plate.
It will be interesting to see how he recovers and what next steps are for the Cardinals veteran outfielder. If he can come back healthy and replicate the success he had earlier in his career, then the Cardinals should be set with their outfield.
