ST. LOUIS CARDINALS NEWS

Lars Nootbaar - Gets aboard three times Nootbaar went 1-for-3 with a pair of walks, a stolen base and two runs scored in Sunday's 6-4 win over the Pirates.

Impact Nootbaar went 2-for-12 with three walks, a home run and a stolen base over three games versus the Pirates during this weekend's series, his first action since mid-August. He's back to playing a starting role in center field after recovering from a groin injury. The outfielder has also returned to the leadoff spot versus right-hander pitchers. Nootbaar is slashing .279/.381/.452 with 13 home runs, 40 RBI, 63 runs scored and nine stolen bases through 93 contests overall. He's also maintained strong strikeout (19.6 percent) and walk (14.1 percent) rates.

SEPTEMBER 4, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Jordan Walker - Keeps power up Sunday Walker went 2-for-4 with a solo home run, a double and an additional run scored in Sunday's 6-4 win over the Pirates.

Impact Walker extended his hitting streak to six games, a span in which he's gone 12-for-21 (.571) with three homers and seven RBI. The rookie seems to be finding a groove late in the year while retaining a near-everyday role in right field. He's at a .274/.341/.453 slash line with 14 homers, 42 RBI, 37 runs scored and six stolen bases through 93 contests overall.

SEPTEMBER 4, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Giovanny Gallegos - Earns 10th save Gallegos picked up the save Sunday against the Pirates. He struck out one over a perfect inning.

Impact Gallegos had allowed six earned runs in 2.2 innings since his last save on Aug. 9, but needed only eight pitches to close out Sunday's game. Gallegos has been splitting the late-inning duties with JoJo Romero, but with Ryan Helsley recently being activated from the injured list, the pecking order of the Cardinals bullpen remains murky.

SEPTEMBER 4, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Cards getting glimpse of Walker's defensive potential ST. LOUIS -- Andrew McCutchen swung at a low fastball from Zack Thompson and caught it on the barrel of his bat. It came off hot, at 103.6 m...

SEPTEMBER 4, 2023 • MLB.COM

Tommy Edman - Swipes two in win Edman went 1-for-2 with two walks, two runs scored and two steals in Sunday's win over Pittsburgh.

Impact Batting in his customary ninth spot in the order against a righty, Edman reached base three times to help spark the Cardinals to a win in the series finale. It was Edman's second multi-steal effort in four games, and he has now swiped 22 bags on the season. He's now slashing .246/.310/.415 with 12 homers, 41 RBI and 60 runs scored in 386 at-bats over 114 games.

SEPTEMBER 4, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Zack Thompson keeps rolling while Cardinals continue to evaluate for 2024 Thompson struggled at Triple A, but the Cardinals identified something beyond the numbers and he's rewarded their faith.

SEPTEMBER 4, 2023 • THEATHLETIC.COM

Zack Thompson - Tosses quality start, earns win Thompson (4-5) earned the win Sunday, allowing three runs on seven hits and zero walks over seven innings against Pittsburgh. He struck out six.

Impact It was the longest outing of Thompson's career as he closed out the seventh emphatically by allowing a pop up then striking out the final two batters for a 1-2-3 inning. The win was his second over the Pirates in 11 days and helped the Cardinals stave off a sweep. Thompson will carry a 3.86 ERA into his next start, likely to take place next weekend in Cincinnati.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Matthew Liberatore - Another inefficient rehab start Liberatore (back) struck out six while allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits and five walks over three innings in his rehab start Sunday for Triple-A Memphis.

Impact Though the young southpaw was able to build up to 90 pitches Sunday, he threw just 50 strikes and issued five free passes for the second rehab outing in a row. Liberatore looks to be fully stretched out again after landing on the 15-day injured list Aug. 22 with lower-back tightness, but his ongoing struggles in finding the strike zone could prompt the Cardinals to send him back out for another rehab start during the upcoming week rather than activating him.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Steven Matz - Likely done for 2024 Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said Sunday that Matz (lat) remains week-to-week and "probably" won't pitch again this season, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Impact Matz landed on the 15-day injured list Aug. 14 with a left lat strain and has yet to resume throwing. While the Cardinals haven't indicated that his lat strain is serious enough to require surgery, the team won't look to rush back a historically injury-prone pitcher in the midst of a non-contending season. Assuming Matz remains shut down, he'll finish his second season in St. Louis with a 4-7 record, 3.86 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 98:32 K:BB over 105 innings. He'll head into the 2024 campaign with two seasons remaining on the four-year, $44 million deal he signed in November 2021.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Nolan Gorman and Alec Burleson come up clutch as Cardinals topple the Pirates 6-4 ST. LOUIS — The Cardinals have struggled with the bases loaded this season. After coming up empty after a golden opportunity empty in the fi...

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • CHARLOTTEOBSERVER.COM

Cardinals stave off 3-game sweep by edging Pirates Alec Burleson and Nolan Gorman drove in two runs each as the St.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • STAR-TELEGRAM.COM

Walker and Thompson help the Cardinals knock off the Pirates 6-4 to avoid sweep

Jordan Walker homered and Zack Thompson tossed seven effective innings to lead the St. Louis Cardinals to a 6-4 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

St. Louis Cardinals at Atlanta Braves Preview - 09/05/2023 This browser does not support the video element.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • MLB.COM

Tyler O'Neill - Out of Sunday's lineup O'Neill is not in the lineup for Sunday's game versus the Pirates, Jeff Jones of the Belleville News-Democrat reports.

Impact O'Neill started the first two games of the series and will receive Sunday off after going 2-for-8 with a double and a three-run homer. Richie Palacios, Lars Nootbaar and Jordan Walker will start from left to right in the outfield for St. Louis.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Masyn Winn - Hits bench Sunday Winn is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates, John Denton of MLB.com reports.

Impact Tommy Edman will handle shortstop duties in the series finale after Winn manned the position in each of the past five games. While the long-term future remains bright for the 21-year-old rookie, he's gotten off to a slow start to his big-league career with a .170/.188/.213 slash line through his first 49 plate appearances for St. Louis.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Willson Contreras - Gets day off Contreras is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Pirates, John Denton of MLB.com reports.

Impact Contreras will get a well-deserved day off after catching both of the past two days and starting behind the plate or at designated hitter in each of the Cardinals' last 15 games. Andrew Knizner will handle the catching duties in Sunday's series finale.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Pirates try to extend road win streak in matchup with the Cardinals

The Pittsburgh Pirates hit the road against the St. Louis Cardinals trying to extend a five-game road winning streak

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ASSOCIATED PRESS

Lars Nootbaar - Homers in second game back Nootbaar went 1-for-5 with a solo home run in Saturday's 7-6 loss to the Pirates.

Impact Nootbaar returned Friday from a two-week absence due to a groin injury. He's just 1-for-9 across two contests since he was activated from the injured list. Prior to sustaining the injury, he hit .333 (18-for-54) in August. For the season, he's at a .278/.378/.453 slash line, 13 long balls, 40 RBI, 61 runs scored and eight stolen bases through 92 contests in a breakout campaign. He should see plenty of playing time in the outfield over the final month of the season.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Drew VerHagen - Takes loss Saturday VerHagen (4-1) allowed two runs on one hit over one-third of an inning to take the loss and a blown save Saturday versus the Pirates.

Impact Verhagen plunked Andrew McCutchen and gave up a two-run home run to Josh Palacios in the ninth inning. Prior to Saturday, VerHagen had been in good form with just one run allowed over 10 innings since the start of August. The right-hander has a 4.38 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 52:21 K:BB, 12 holds and a blown save through 52 innings this season.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Jordan Walker - Remains hot Saturday Walker went 2-for-3 with a two-run home run in a loss to Pittsburgh on Saturday.

Impact Walker came up with a clutch blast for the Cardinals in the seventh inning, swatting a two-run homer that turned a one-run deficit into a one-run lead. He drew a hit-by-pitch in the ninth to get on base as the potential game-winning run, but St. Louis was unable to bring him home. Walker has been swinging a hot stick of late, collecting multiple hits three times during his current five-game hit streak. He's batting .588 (10-for-17) with two homers and six RBI over that stretch.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Tyler O'Neill - Swats three-run homer O'Neill went 1-for-4 with a three-run home run in a loss to the Pirates on Saturday.

Impact O'Neill gave the Cardinals an early lead with a three-run shot in the second inning, but Pittsburgh rallied late to take the win. The long ball the eighth in what has been another injury-plagued season for O'Neill, as he's missed over 70 games due to back and knee issues. The outfielder has largely struggled when he has been able to play, slashing .232/.315/.411 with 19 RBI, 24 runs, four steals and a 26.7 percent strikeout rate over 232 plate appearances.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Drew Rom - Labors against Pirates Rom allowed three runs on five hits and three walks while striking out one batter over 4.2 innings in a no-decision against Pittsburgh on Saturday.

Impact Rom began the contest well, holding the Pirates scoreless through three frames. However, he gave up a run on a walk and a triple in the fourth, then saw the wheels fall off in the fifth when four of the six batters he faced reached base. Rom was lifted before he could complete five innings when Andrew McCutchen knotted the score 3-3 with a two-out RBI single. Rom at least avoided taking his third straight loss since being called up to the majors, but he's had a rough time with a 7.24 ERA, 1.90 WHIP and 11:8 K:BB over 13.2 frames thus far.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • ROTOWIRE

Cardinals vs. Pirates Prediction, Odds, Picks - September 3

Preview the September 3 matchup between the St. Louis Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates with odds over/under, game spread, betting lines and more.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • DATA SKRIVE

Waino's next start pushed back to Thursday in Atlanta ST. LOUIS -- Near the end of the most forgettable Cardinals season in recent memory, Adam Wainwright can offer fans something to remember fo...

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • MLB.COM

Palacios homers in 9th as Pirates beat Cardinals 7-6 for 5th straight win Josh Palacios hit a pinch hit home run off Drew VerHagen in the top of the ninth inning to help the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the St.

SEPTEMBER 3, 2023 • SANDIEGOUNIONTRIBUNE.COM