Lars Nootbaar

[7] The St. Louis Cardinals selected Nootbaar in the eighth round of the 2018 Major League Baseball draft.

[12] Nootbaar began the 2021 season at the Cardinals' alternate training site before being reassigned to the Triple-A East Memphis Redbirds.

[18] He hit his first career home run as a pinch-hitter off JT Brubaker in a 7–6 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on August 12.

[20] On August 25, Nootbaar got his first career walk-off hit, a single in the 10th inning against Tigers relief pitcher Michael Fulmer.

[23] Nootbaar entered the 2022 season as the Cardinals' fourth outfielder before eventually moving into a starting role after injuries and positive play.

[25] In 2006, a Japan national youth team toured the US, including future MLB player Masahiro Tanaka and Japanese high school pitching phenom Yuki Saito.

[26] 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 shared meals with the family.

[26] According to his mother, this experience was later influential to Nootbaar accepting an offer to join the Japan national team for the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

[16] Nootbaar's older brother, Nigel, was a pitcher at USC and played professionally in the Baltimore Orioles system.

Nootbaar with the State College Spikes in 2018
Nootbaar with St.Louis in 2024.
Nootbaar with the WBC Japan national team at Tokyo Dome on March 16, 2023