The Cardinals are taking calls on Lars Nootbaar, and the interest is coming from teams that do not see him as a short-term rental. The Phillies and Yankees are among several clubs that have asked about the 28-year-old, with the Astros also checking in as Monday's trade deadline approaches.
That makes Nootbaar one of the more notable names in a market that can thin out fast. He is playing on a $5.25 million salary in 2026 and will go through arbitration one more time after this season, so any club that lands him would be buying more than a late-season stopgap.
The appeal is easy to see. Since debuting in 2021, Nootbaar has hit.241/.341/.402 over 2,140 plate appearances, and he posted a.872 OPS in June after returning to the big leagues on June 5. He had surgery on both heels in the offseason, though, and his 2025 line slipped to a 96 wRC+ in 583 trips to the plate. That mix of production and uncertainty has kept him on the radar even as his season has not been spotless.
The Cardinals do not have much margin for a clean stand-pat decision. They are 4-12 since the All-Star break, 55-57 overall, 15 games back of Milwaukee in the NL Central and 3 1/2 games out of Wild Card position. If they keep listening on Nootbaar, the return would have to match both his control beyond this year and the fact that contenders already view him as a fit.
For now, the market is doing the talking. A player with everyday upside and another year of team control is drawing interest from multiple clubs, and the Cardinals will have to decide by Monday whether that interest becomes a deal or just another round of calls.
