The chants of “Nooooot!” at Busch Stadium may soon return as Lars Nootbaar, one of the St. Louis Cardinals’ offensive stars, embarks on a determined recovery journey after two heel surgeries — an injury he once admitted “took away my agility for the last few years.” What many doubted has now become an inspiring revival story, keeping MLB on high alert for the 2026 season.

Many players try to hide injuries, but Nootbaar has been candid about his struggles with chronic heel pain and Haglund deformity — a condition so painful that even simple things like climbing stairs require assistance. “There were times over the last few years when I couldn’t go up and down stairs without holding onto a handrail,” he shared about how it “robbed” him from his agility.

This condition negatively impacted his running speed, causing Nootbaar to fall from being one of MLB’s fastest runners in previous years to just around 39 percentile in the 2025 season—the lowest point of his career. However, he decided to undergo surgery in October 2025 to end this painful ordeal once and for all.

Nootbaar doesn’t hide his frustration when talking about the years he’s had to play in pain. Not only did it affect his performance on the plate—bringing his OPS down to a career-low of .686 in the 2025 season—but the heel condition also made him less agile in defense and base running.

The surgery to address Haglund’s deformities was a courageous step, as it wasn’t a typical intervention like a rotator cuff or ACL injury. It was a decision that prioritized his health over short-term performance. This has led many to doubt his ability to return to 100%.

At Spring Training at Jupiter this week, Nootbaar began pitching and practicing — the first steps in his return after surgery. Instead of setting a specific return date, he and the Cardinals’ medical team chose to monitor his recovery based on how his body felt — “we don’t want to set a specific date and then have to backtrack if something goes wrong,” he said.

Nootbaar’s initial goal is to accumulate around 40 plate appearances between Spring Training and minor league games to fully regain his readiness — not according to a rigid schedule, but according to the actual progress of his recovery.

Keeping Nootbaar on the team — despite trade rumors surrounding many veteran players this winter — shows the Cardinals believe a healthy Nootbaar can return to the peak form he displayed in the 2022 and 2023 seasons, when he contributed a total of 28 home runs and .786 OPS.

At 28 years old and with accumulated experience, Nootbaar is not only a bat that can spread across the lineup but also one of the offensive “souls” that can inspire a team undergoing restructuring under new leadership.

What makes Nootbaar’s story even more compelling is the contrast between years of pain and hope for recovery. While many focused their attention on young players or new bombers, Nootbaar fought with his body to rediscover the speed and agility that once made him a haunting target for opposing defenses.

This recovery isn’t just about physical fitness. It’s a psychological battle against the fear of relapse, patience through long days on the sidelines, and the belief in once again stepping onto the court with all the best of a complete player.

The Cardinals decided not to rush Nootbaar’s return — even if it meant starting the 2026 season from the injured list — to ensure he wouldn’t pay the price with a relapse. For an organization in a rebuilding phase and building a long-term future, this was a strategic choice rather than a risky one.

Lars Nootbaar was one of the Cardinals’ most prominent outfield players since rising to the starting position. Now, after years battling pain, he’s doing something few thought possible: restoring the speed, mobility, and energy that once made opponents wary.

If he achieves his goal of around 40 plate appearances, based on his own feelings, before the season begins, the 2026 season could become a revival chapter, marking the powerful return of a player who was once “chronic pain robbed him of his peak performance.”

With his unhurried recovery efforts, transparency regarding his body’s sensations, and the organization’s trust, Lars Nootbaar is writing another inspiring chapter in the history of the Cardinals and their fans.

Pain hasn’t taken him away again.

Now, it’s just the foundation for a great comeback.