{"id":158083,"date":"2026-03-01T02:45:48","date_gmt":"2026-03-01T02:45:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083"},"modified":"2026-03-01T02:45:48","modified_gmt":"2026-03-01T02:45:48","slug":"cardinals-urged-to-deal-5-25-million-fan-favorite-wbc-star-to-be-replaced-by-nathan-church","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083","title":{"rendered":"Cardinals urged to deal $5.25 million fan-favorite, WBC star to be replaced by Nathan Church"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/s.yimg.com\/os\/en\/the_sporting_news_articles_584\/3e3a820dde17f899e44d12a60ef31a56\" alt=\"Cardinals urged to deal $5.25 million fan-favorite, WBC star to be replaced  by Nathan Church - Yahoo Sports\" \/><\/p>\n<section id=\"article-body\">The St. Louis Cardinals pushed the big red button this offseason, blowing up their roster by dealing stars in Nolan Arenado, Wilson Contreras, Brendan Donovan, and Sonny Gray. However, there are a couple role players they should also deal to fully commit to rebuilding.<\/p>\n<p>According to Fansided\u2019s Christopher Kline, one of those players is fan-favorite and former World Baseball Classic star Lars Nootbaar. Nootbar is a decent outfielder that has some value as a trade chip, so the Cards should try to cash in.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe 2025 campaign was a struggle for Lars Nootbaar, who put up a .686 OPS and 95 OPS+ in 509 at-bats. The numbers under the hood are much better, however, which means he&#8217;s due for positive regression. With two more years of club control, the 28-year-old lefty has real value as a trade chip. Plenty of outfield-needy teams have been connected to Nootbaar this winter. So, again, Bloom ought to act. Nathan Church made his MLB debut last season after raking through the Minors. The early sample was not great, but the speedster profiles as an elite defender, at the very least. The Cardinals can pivot toward run prevention with an offense that will underperform regardless. Nootbaar is a fan favorite and one of the more accomplished hitters left on this Cardinals roster, but rather than wait until he&#8217;s a lame duck, St. Louis should pull the trigger now and keep stockpiling for the future,\u201d Kline wrote.<\/p>\n<p>This past season, Nootbaar slashed .234\/.325\/.361\/.686 with 24 doubles, 13 home runs and 48 RBI in 135 games. But as Kline mentions, the underlying numbers for Nootbar show that he\u2019s still a nice commodity to have.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Nootbaar is set to make $5.25 million this season, and still has another year of control. This should be attractive for teams that desperately need a starting outfielder as well.<\/p>\n<p>While it always hurts to see a fan-favorite go, if the Cards want to truly commit to a rebuild, finding a suitor for Nootbaar needs to happen. Then, Nathan Church can step in as his long-term replacement.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/section>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The St. Louis Cardinals pushed the big red button this offseason, blowing up their roster by dealing stars in Nolan Arenado, Wilson Contreras, Brendan Donovan, and Sonny&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":158084,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-158083","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Cardinals urged to deal $5.25 million fan-favorite, WBC star to be replaced by Nathan Church - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Cardinals urged to deal $5.25 million fan-favorite, WBC star to be replaced by Nathan Church - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The St. Louis Cardinals pushed the big red button this offseason, blowing up their roster by dealing stars in Nolan Arenado, Wilson Contreras, Brendan Donovan, and Sonny...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-03-01T02:45:48+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Rinrin-25.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"XuanTan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"XuanTan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083\",\"name\":\"Cardinals urged to deal $5.25 million fan-favorite, WBC star to be replaced by Nathan Church - NEWS USA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Rinrin-25.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-03-01T02:45:48+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-03-01T02:45:48+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Rinrin-25.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Rinrin-25.jpg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":1000},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Cardinals urged to deal $5.25 million fan-favorite, WBC star to be replaced by Nathan Church\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\",\"name\":\"NEWS USA\",\"description\":\"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06\",\"name\":\"XuanTan\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"XuanTan\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=2\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Cardinals urged to deal $5.25 million fan-favorite, WBC star to be replaced by Nathan Church - NEWS USA","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Cardinals urged to deal $5.25 million fan-favorite, WBC star to be replaced by Nathan Church - NEWS USA","og_description":"The St. Louis Cardinals pushed the big red button this offseason, blowing up their roster by dealing stars in Nolan Arenado, Wilson Contreras, Brendan Donovan, and Sonny...","og_url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083","og_site_name":"NEWS USA","article_published_time":"2026-03-01T02:45:48+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1000,"height":1000,"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Rinrin-25.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"XuanTan","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"XuanTan","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083","name":"Cardinals urged to deal $5.25 million fan-favorite, WBC star to be replaced by Nathan Church - NEWS USA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Rinrin-25.jpg","datePublished":"2026-03-01T02:45:48+00:00","dateModified":"2026-03-01T02:45:48+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Rinrin-25.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/Rinrin-25.jpg","width":1000,"height":1000},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=158083#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Cardinals urged to deal $5.25 million fan-favorite, WBC star to be replaced by Nathan Church"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/","name":"NEWS USA","description":"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06","name":"XuanTan","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"XuanTan"},"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=2"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158083","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=158083"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158083\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":158085,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/158083\/revisions\/158085"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/158084"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=158083"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=158083"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=158083"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}