Lars Nootbaar

is an American professional baseball outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). On the international level, he represents the Japan national baseball team.

Born and raised in El Segundo, California, Nootbaar played three seasons of college baseball at the University of Southern California. The Cardinals selected him in the eighth round of the 2018 MLB draft, and he made his MLB debut in 2021.

Early life and amateur career

Nootbaar was born to an American father of Dutch descent, Charlie Nootbaar, and a Japanese mother, Kumiko Enokida. Nootbaar grew up in El Segundo, California.

He later attended El Segundo High School, where he played baseball and football. He was a three-time league MVP in baseball and twice in football as the Eagles' starting quarterback. He committed to play college baseball at the University of Southern California (USC) and was recruited to play college football by UC Davis and Fordham.

Nootbaar was a three-year starter for the USC Trojans, where his older brother Nigel had played. He was named All-Pac-12 Conference as a sophomore after hitting .313 with 34 RBIs, 33 runs scored, and seven home runs. Following the season, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Orleans Firebirds of the Cape Cod Baseball League. As a junior, Nootbaar had a .249 batting average with six home runs and 24 runs batted in (RBIs).

Professional career

The St. Louis Cardinals selected Nootbaar in the eighth round of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft. After signing with the team, he was assigned to the State College Spikes of the Class A Short Season New York–Penn League, where he set a team record with seven RBIs in one game. For the season, he hit .227 with two home runs and 26 RBIs over 56 games. Nootbaar began the 2019 season with the Class A Peoria Chiefs of the Midwest League before being promoted to the Class A-Advanced Palm Beach Cardinals of the Florida State League. He was promoted a second time to the Springfield Cardinals of the Double-A Texas League. Over 101 games between the three clubs, he batted .264 with seven home runs and 38 RBIs. In 2020, the minor league season was canceled by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nootbaar began the 2021 season at the Cardinals' alternate training site before being reassigned to the Triple-A East Memphis Redbirds. He was placed on the injured list with a hand injury on May 28, and was activated on June 14.On June 22, 2021, Nootbaar was selected to the 40-man roster and promoted to the major leagues for the first time. At the time of his promotion, he had a .329/.430/.557 slash line with five home runs and 17 RBIs over 22 games. He made his MLB debut that day as the starting left fielder against the Detroit Tigers. The following day, Nootbaar recorded his first MLB hit, a triple. He hit his first MLB home run as a pinch hitter off JT Brubaker in a 7–6 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on August 12. Nootbaar hit another pinch-hit home run the next day in a 6–0 victory over the Kansas City Royals. On August 25, Nootbaar got his first career walk-off hit, a single in the 10th inning against Tigers reliever Michael Fulmer. Nootbaar finished 2021 slashing .239/.317/.422 with five home runs and 15 RBIs over 124 plate appearances in the majors. He played in the Arizona Fall League for the Glendale Desert Dogs after the season.

Nootbaar entered the 2022 season as the Cardinals' fourth outfielder before eventually moving into a starting role after others' injuries and his strong play. Over 108 games for St. Louis, he hit .228/.340/.448 with 14 home runs, 40 RBIs, and 16 doubles. Nootbaar mainly played in center field for the Cardinals in 2023, also spending time in left and right field. Over 117 games, he batted .261 with 14 home runs and 46 RBIs. He suffered rib fractures before the 2024 season. His performance and playing time dipped in 2024, as he batted .244 with 12 home runs in 109 games.

International career

In 2006, a Japanese national youth team toured the US, including future MLB pitcher Masahiro Tanaka and Japanese high school pitching phenom Yuki Saito. The nine-year-old Nootbaar served as a batboy and interacted with the team, including stretching and playing catch, and some of the players stayed at his house and ate with the family. According to his mother, this experience later led Nootbaar to accept an offer to join the Japanese national team for the 2023 World Baseball Classic. Japan won the tournament, with Nootbaar batting leadoff and recording an RBI in the championship game against the United States. Nootbaar was the first player not born in Japan to represent the country in a World Baseball Classic.

Personal life

Nootbaar's parents met while they were students at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Nootbaar's older brother, Nigel, pitched at USC and then played professionally in the Baltimore Orioles minor league system from 2012 to 2015. Nootbaar also has a sister, Nicole.

Nootbaar has one of his middle names "Tatsuji," also his grandfather's name, printed on some of his baseball equipment.

During the 2022 season, Nootbaar became a fan favorite among Cardinals fans, often being greeted with "Nooooot!" when batting or making a defensive play, which may be mistaken for booing.

References

External links

Essay
"Can You Believe This Right Now?" The Players' Tribune, May 11, 2023.
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Nootbaar, Lars
1997 births
Living people
2023 World Baseball Classic players
American baseball players of Japanese descent
American people of Dutch descent
American people of German descent
El Segundo High School alumni
Glendale Desert Dogs players
La Crosse Loggers players
Major League Baseball outfielders
Memphis Redbirds players
Orleans Firebirds players
Palm Beach Cardinals players
People from El Segundo, California
Baseball players from Los Angeles County, California
Peoria Chiefs players
Springfield Cardinals players
St. Louis Cardinals players
State College Spikes players
USC Trojans baseball players
World Baseball Classic players of Japan