Inside The Cardinals

Cardinals Fan Favorite Predicted To Earn First All-Star Game Appearance This Summer

The St. Louis Gold Glove defender is ready to make an impact in 2025
Nate Hagerty|
Mar 27, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; A general view of Busch Stadium before Opening Day game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Minnesota Twins at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
Mar 27, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; A general view of Busch Stadium before Opening Day game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Minnesota Twins at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

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St. Louis Cardinals

Many predict that the St. Louis Cardinals won't amount to much success this year but that doesn't mean every player on their roster is doomed for a disappointing season.

For instance, former Cardinals top prospect Lars Nootbaar is off to a commanding start at the plate -- batting .421 with eight hits including two home runs, five RBIs and a 1.297 OPS in 19 at-bats across five games played for St. Louis in 2025.

If Nootbaar maintains his offensive pace and stays healthy, he and another Cardinals fan favorite could earn their first All-Star game appearances this summer.

"Patrick Bailey (San Francisco Giants), Pete Crow-Armstrong (Chicago Cubs), Brendan Donovan (STL), Matt McLain (Cincinnati Reds), James Wood (Washington Nationals) would all be first-time All-Star selections, and that group is a small snapshot of some of the up-and-coming talent in the National League," Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter wrote Wednesday morning when making his early predictions for this summer's All-Star game rosters.

Donovan is batting .250 with five hits including one home run, three RBIs and a .704 OPS in 20 at-bats across the Cardinals' first five games this season.

The Gold Glove defender has remained a consistent contact hitter for the Cardinals since debuting with the club in Apr. 2022 but St. Louis would love to see more power from the homegrown star.

The 28-year-old has belted just 31 home runs throughout his four-year career with the Cardinals -- logging his most in a single season with 14 dingers in 2024.

With expectations low for the Cardinals this year, perhaps this is Donovan's chance to take advantage of the franchise's nothing-to-lose mentality by having a career-best offensive season -- helping him earn his first-ever All-Star game selection this summer.

More MLB: Cardinals Fan Favorite Claims 'Something Scary' Is Coming Amid Slow Start To 2025

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Nate Hagerty
NATE HAGERTY

Nate Hagerty joined “Inside The Cardinals” as a content creator to spread knowledge about his favorite childhood team. A hometown native of Boston, Hagerty chose at an early age of six years old to follow the St. Louis Cardinals. The miraculous season of 04’ for the Red Sox did not deter Hagerty from rooting against his hometown team, nor did it in 2013 against the Red Birds. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding Inside The Cardinals, please reach out to Scott Neville: nevilles@merrimack.edu 

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