Cardinals’ Lars Nootbaar gets date for 2026 debut

The St. Louis Cardinals have been without outfielder Lars Nootbaar throughout the entire 2026 season. But now, he is inching closer to finally returning to the major leagues.

Nootbaar will be making his 2026 debut when he begins his rehab assignment at Low-A Palm Peach on Friday, via Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post Dispatch. The outfielder is working his way back from offseason surgery on both heels.

“The Cardinals wanted to see how Nootbaar recovered from going through pre-game workouts and warmups Thursday,” Goold wrote. “He has been participating in batting practice and other pre-game activities with the Palm Beach affiliate while rehabbing from bilateral heel surgery in Jupiter, Florida. Nootbaar had growths on both his heels addressed with procedures in October meant to alleviate pain, swelling, and limited range of motion in his feet.”

When Nootbaar does return to the Cardinals, he will be expected to continue playing a pivotal role for St. Louis. Over his four seasons, the outfielder has at least 12 home runs and 40 RBIs. Through 527 games total in St. Louis, Nootbaar has hit .242 with 58 home runs, 194 RBIs and 28 stolen bases.

When he was on the field last in 2025, the outfielder hit .234 with 13 home runs, a career-high 48 RBIs and four stolen bases. With 68 runs scored, the Cardinals would hope he can get on base atop their lineup once again.

St. Louis is carefully evaluating their whole roster as they figure out what their future looks like. When Nootbaar returns, it’ll be determined if he’s a part of their core or a trade piece. If the outfielder stays healthy throughout his rehab assignment, that return will come sooner rather than later.

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