Oft-injured outfielder is proving to be the Cardinals Achilles' heel again

The St. Louis Cardinals were a healthy team for most of the season, but the continuous playing through injuries may finally be catching up. After it was announced that a quartet of Cardinals underwent surgeries as the offseason began, Jeff Jones dove deeper into the rehab

Lars Nootbaar's surgery may be more concerning than initially feared.

2025 was actually Lars Nootbaar's healthiest campaign to date, playing in a career-high 135 games and only hitting the injured list one time due to a rib issue. That should have been enough for the team to get a clear view on Noot's potential, but it appears the organization is still unsure of his short-term and long-term fit with the Cardinals. He is still only 28 years old, but he is arbitration eligible for this offseason and is likely due a raise and will make just over $5 million.

This is not a bad price to pay for Nootbaar's potential production, but the consistency remains an issue. There were times when the lefty seemed like the answer at the leadoff spot, a tantalizing mix of patience and power, but then there were others when he seemed lost and without a plan at the plate. He is also graded average or slightly below defensively, so Noot seems to be coming into a role that may just be a solid third or fourth outfielder.

Nootbaar's future may have become even more cloudy, though, with recent news regarding his surgery that concentrated on removing bony growths from his heel that could cause future problems, but Jones' research on the procedure did not provide much positive insight for his recovery. The growth is known as Haglund's deformity, and Noot is the highest-profile baseball player to go under the knife since Yoenis Cespedes had a similar procedure done in 2018.

According to Jones, the initial timeline for Cespdes was eight to ten months. However, he did not return to the big leagues until 2020, but he also had other complications with his feet and ankles at that time, so the rehab process remains unclear. In other major sports, Jones notes that former basketball player John Wall had the Hoglund's deformity procedure and, just days after the surgery, tore his Achilles in an accident at home. Neither of these injuries and rehab timelines provides insight to Nootbaar, as it appears both Cespedes and Wall had other issues that caused a longer time on the shelf than anticipated.

Either way, it appears that the procedure Nootbaar went under may limit his availability in Spring Training, if not longer. The Cardinals did not announce any expectations for Noot, and this could either be because of the rarity of the surgery or that they do not want to force their outfielder back too soon, further complicating his recovery.