{{player.name}}

2026 Fantasy Baseball Player Profile

Lars Nootbaar’s 2025 season was a study in frustration, as he finally achieved a career-high in volume while posting the least productive numbers of his career. Despite appearing in 135 games and logging 583 plate appearances, Nootbaar struggled to a .234/.325/.361 slash line with 13 home runs and a career-low .686 OPS. While he missed three weeks in July due to a ribcage injury, his season was largely defined by a silent battle with Haglund’s deformities in both heels, a condition he later admitted had bothered him for years. Paradoxically, his underlying metrics remained elite; he posted a career-best 50% hard-hit rate and a 10.2% barrel rate, suggesting that his physical ailments likely sapped the functional power needed to turn those loud outs into extra-base hits.

Entering 2026, Nootbaar’s status is the primary storyline of Cardinals spring training. After undergoing double-heel surgery in October, he was the final player to report to camp in February, a delay caused by his need for a specialized zero-gravity treadmill during his rehab. While he is currently hitting and throwing without issue, the team has not yet committed to an Opening Day timeline as he only recently began his unaided running program. Fantasy managers should view him as a high-upside "post-hype" sleeper with an ADP currently tumbling toward 373. If the surgery successfully unlocks his mobility, his elite plate discipline and batted-ball profile make him a prime candidate for a massive late-career breakout, provided he can finally clear the IL for a full season.