Sounding akin to a Nordic protein bar that enjoyed suing Napster in the ’90s, there might be more to recent call-up Lars Nootbaar than may seem, sans of course his name. And while I generally don’t cover prospects here at the Razz, Nootbaar carries the unique distinction of never really being a heralded one so curiosity wins the day. Just an eighth-round pick back in 2018, Nootbaar entered this season neither in the Cardinals’ top-30 prospects at Baseball America, MLB.com, nor FanGraphs, he’s held his own so far in this first 16 plate appearances and could be seeing a bit more time as the season progresses. What can we ultimately expect and what is capable are some of the things we’ll explore. And we’re taking the scenic route, whatever that means. Surely it has something to do with your mom…
So to be brutally honest, the Cardinals outfield has been quite the dumpster fire. Tyler O’Neill and Dylan Carlson, along with the recently optioned-for-Nootbaar Lane Thomas had produced a combined 95 wRC+, ranked 24th in the Majors. When you actually look at the combined splits, the picture gets worse with a combined .232 average, .307 on-base percentage, and just a paltry .401 slugging, which in of itself has been heavily driven by O’Neill’s 15 home runs as of this writing.
Now, as long as you accept the fact that someone is actually named Lars Nootbar and that they’re a real person, you should also know that despite being a prospect that many people talk about, he has been a generally strong hitter at almost every minor league level, putting together a .329/.430/.557 slash in Triple-A before getting the call. Granted, this is just 22 games, and of course, this year along with past season’s successes have to be taken with a grain of salt as the Minor League production is not always indicative of Major League production.
But when Nootbar was drafted back in 2018, he was a guy drafted for power, carrying the size and swing to potentially fit nicely as a corner-infielder with a common profile for that position. While that power has yet to be generated in the Minors up until this season (.228 ISO), and he’s somehow ended up in the outfield I do find it a plus that his plate discipline and strong BB% the past three years have been a nice surprise. As my most expert analysis would conclude, to hit the ball hard, you must actually be able to hit the ball.
I honestly could try and break down his four games thus far, but there’s really not much of a point. And while I wouldn’t go trading Bryce Harper for him, there are a few reasons why I think Nootbaar deserves your attention other than the fact that he has a unique name and for some strange reason, might also make you hungry for nougat. Or is that just me?
Part of this plays into the fact of the Cardinals outfield being in disarray. There is the potential for playing time, and there’s probably not a lot of peer competition at the moment as well. Another aspect is just as obvious, and that’s age. Still on-pace for a normal development, his call-up this year bodes well if he can stick around for a while and provide a bit of spark to the lineup.
From the St. Louis point of view, there’s literally nothing to lose sending Nootbaar out there, and the next several weeks should be revealing for both them and us. As of now, I’d recommend picking him up just for the name alone, but if you have an extra spot or want to take a low-risk play, I’d fully recommend based on the fact that he has power potential, can take a walk, and has a genuine opportunity for at-bats. And while it’s probably more casualty than causality, it’s not like the Cardinals organization hasn’t been known to develop hitters in much the same manner. *laughs in Tommy Pham. So no matter how much pun-work you have to sign up for, Lars Nootbaar may just be the hitter you’re looking for, especially if you enjoy shopping at IKEA.
Jay is a longtime Razzball everything who consumes an egregious amount of Makers Mark as a vehicle to gain wisdom and augment his natural glow. Living in the D.C. area, he also likes spending time visiting the local parks and feeding lettuce to any turtles he encounters, including Mitch McConnell. You can follow him on Twitter @jaywrong.
