St. Louis Cardinals Place Starting Outfielder on Injured List
On Thursday, we learned that the St. Louis Cardinals were going to promote top prospect Jordan Walker.
Now we know why.
The team has placed starting outfielder Lars Nootbaar on the 10-day injured list with a back issue.
101 ESPN in St. Louis, a radio station that covers the Cardinals, tweeted out the information:
The #STLCards have recalled Jordan Walker from Triple-A. Lars Nootbaar (lower back contusion) has been placed on the 10-day IL, retroactive to May 30.
Nootbaar is hitting .266 for the Cardinals in 154 at-bats this year. He missed some time at the beginning of the year as well.
He's added four home runs, 21 RBI and five stolen bases while getting on base a .380 clip.
A popular player, Nootbaar gained international notoriety this spring when helping Team Japan win a championship at the World Baseball Classic. His mom also went viral for appearing on Mother's Day coverage on ESPN's "Sunday Night Baseball."
As for Walker: The 21-year-old broke camp with the Cardinals and played in 20 games before being sent back to Triple-A. In those 20 games, he hit .274 with two home runs, 11 RBI and two stolen bases. He struck out 20 times and walked just three.
Since being sent to Triple-A, he played in 29 games, hitting just .239 with four homers, 16 RBI and four steals. He struck out 32 times and walked 16.
Given that he didn't play enough to lose his prospect eligibility, Walker is now the top-rated prospect in all of baseball.
The Cardinals open up a crucial NL Central series with the Pirates on Friday night at 7:05 p.m. ET.
Follow Fastball on FanNation in social media
Continue to follow our Fastball on FanNation coverage on social media by LIKING us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.
You can also subscribe to "The Payoff Pitch" podcast on Apple Podcasts and Spotify.
