Cardinals predicted to trade away beloved outfielder for top-100 prospect reason

The St. Louis Cardinals are in an interesting spot as a franchise. On one hand, 2026 has been much better than anticipated, and the Cardinals could be buying at the trade deadline.

But, on the other, this is year one of a rebuild, and while it's gone better than expected thanks to Jordan Walker and JJ Wetherholt, Chaim Bloom should still look to trade some veterans this summer.

Tim Britton of The Athletic predicted that the Cardinals would sell this summer, specifically trading away beloved outfielder Lars Nootbaar to clear the way for a top 100 prospect to get a shot in the big leagues.

Cardinals predicted to trade Lars Nootbaar to open door for top prospect

"St. Louis deals Lars Nootbaar," Britton predicts. "If not for last winter's bilateral heel surgery, Nootbaar would have already been sent elsewhere. ... Top-100 prospect Joshua Baez might be next to get the big-league call."

The 28-year-old Nootbaar is certainly expendable for the Cardinals, as he's under club control through 2027 only, and could fetch a decent return in a trade this summer.

There are plenty of clubs around Major League Baseball that need outfield help, and a controllable option like Nootbaar would be a fantastic addition.

He has a .241 batting average this season with a .715 OPS and a 104 OPS+. While nothing overly special, those are good enough numbers in 133 at-bats for a team to spend a bit to get him in a deal.

MORE: Red Sox ‘would love’ to trade for Angels’ Zach Neto or Astros’ Jeremy Pena

While losing Nootbaar might sting a bit, the Cardinals would then open a roster spot for a call-up of Joshua Baez, a top outfield prospect who could instantly provide high-upside offensive production to the lineup.

Baez is a fun prospect, as the 23-year-old outfielder has continued to impress for the Cardinals in the minors. He has an .883 OPS this season in 90 games with a .244 average, 69 runs scored, 17 doubles, 31 homers, and 77 RBIs.

The Cardinals and Bloom should be open to trading Nootbaar, unless there's a long-term extension on the horizon. This is a rebuild, and just like how they traded Brendan Donovan, moving on from Nootbaar makes a ton of sense for multiple reasons.

More MLB news:

• Yankees are ‘leading candidate’ to trade for Twins’ Ryan Jeffers
• Giants willing to trade Heliot Ramos in big news for many MLB clubs
• Padres likely not to trade Mason Miller amid latest update
• Tigers expected to trade Tarik Skubal but still try to contend without him
• Mets ‘desperate’ to trade Luis Robert Jr. after trade failure