Cardinals Injury Update: Lars Nootbaar nears return, Ramon Urias progressing

The St. Louis Cardinals have been navigating the early parts of the 2026 season without their starting left fielder, Lars Nootbaar. Well, they may only have to wait a few more days before he returns to the lineup, as Nootbaar appears to be making the final stop on his rehab assignment with Double-A Springfield this week.

Nootbaar has been on the road back to St. Louis after he had surgery on both of his heels this offseason, hoping to address issues that he and the Cardinals believe have been hurting his performance on the field and also contributing to other injuries that have kept him off it. Once Nootbaar returns to the lineup, he could be the lynchpin they have been looking for to help bridge the production from the top of their lineup to the bottom of their order.

Nootbaar is a career 110 wRC+ hitter at the plate, which would be a nice boost to a Cardinals lineup that has been so top-heavy to start the year. The Cardinals will be careful not to rush Nootbaar back to the field, but he is someone they are very eager to see back in the fold.

If all goes well, we may see Nootbaar make his season debut for the Cardinals at home against the Chicago Cubs this weekend.

Ramon Urias is progressing in his rehab program, when will he return to Cardinals?

Ramon Urias, who hit the injured list with right elbow lateral epicondylitis on May 5th, has progressed to dry swings and plyos and should be starting his throwing program soon, according to Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat. That puts him a week or two from a potential rehab assignment, barring how that throwing program goes.

Urias has had nice moments for the Cardinals this season, but his .595 OPS wasn't where anyone wanted to see it. Still, once he is healthy, there will likely be a role for him on the big league roster over someone like Thomas Saggese or Cesar Prieto, though things do start to get tough to put together when Nootbaar is back and Nathan Church's eventual return.

Right now, the Cardinals' bench consists of Saggese, Prieto, Jose Fermin, and Yohel Pozo, with Bryan Torres drawing starts in left field since his debut. Saggese and Prieto seem to be the two clearest demotion candidates once Nootbaar and Urias return, but how the Cardinals handle Torres, Fermin, and Pozo once Church is ready will be fascinating to watch, especially if Torres continues to play well.

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