Cardinals Take Cautious Route as Lars Nootbaar Nears Return

The St. Louis Cardinals outfielder is working his way back into the mix.

Aug 31, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar (21) high fives teammates after scoring on a sacrifice fly out hit by designated hitter Ivan Herrera (not pictured) in the third inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images | Katie Stratman-Imagn Images

The St. Louis Cardinals will not be getting Lars Nootbaar back in the lineup on Sunday when he's eligible to come off the 60-Day Injured List.

On Saturday, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reported that Nootbaar will not be activated on Sunday.

"As anticipated, Lars Nootbaar will not be coming off the IL when he's eligible on Sunday," Jones wrote. "Will have an assignment to another affiliate next week. [Oli Marmol] wasn't sure which off the top of his head, but Springfield is at home and Memphis is on the road."

Lars Nootbaar Isn't Coming Back Yet

Sep 19, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Milwaukee Brewers second baseman Brice Turang (2) dives and tags out St. Louis Cardinals left fielder Lars Nootbaar (21) during the first inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

While this is the case, it shouldn't be much longer before we're able to see him back in game action. He kicked off his minor league rehab assignment on May 15 and entered the day on Saturday with four appearances under his belt. His rehab assignment began with Class-A Palm Beach for the first two games. He moved up to Triple-A Memphis on May 19.

Nootbaar continued his rehab assignment on Saturday night for Triple-A Memphis and blasted his second homer since he started getting into game action.

LET'S CHECK IN ON LARS NOOTBAAR'S MLB REHAB ASSIGNMENT ONCE MORE!@LennysSubs LONGBALL!#LennysLongball pic.twitter.com/jxEzOi3Yla

— Memphis Redbirds (@memphisredbirds) May 24, 2026

St. Louis already has been good this season and it will be even better when the 28-year-old is back in the big league lineup. That won't be the case on Sunday, but he will be on the way in the not-so-distant future. With his minor league rehab assignment beginning on May 15, he has a 20-day clock before the club needs to make a call on his roster spot. There's no need to rush him. The Cardinals still have a few days left on the clock and the club has been good even without him in the lineup.

He has looked good down in the minors. Soon enough, his time will come.

Last season, Nootbaar slashed .234/.325/.361 with a .686 OPS, 13 homers, 48 RBIs, four stolen bases, 64 walks, 24 doubles, one triple and 68 runs scored in 135 games played. He was solid, but wasn't at full strength. The year before, he slashed .244/.342/.417 with a .758 OPS, 12 homers, and 45 RBIs in 109 games played. His offseason heel surgery should help to make him a bit more dynamic on the base paths. Things shifted over the last few years. In 2023, he stole 11 bases. In 2024, he had seven stolen bases. Last year, he stole just four bases.

Nootbaar is still working his way back, but it shouldn't be long.