Victor

Scott II

The Cardinals will probably have Nootbaar spend the full 20 days in the minors or at least something very close to it. Once back, he’ll probably serve as the team’s left fielder. Nathan Church could potentially slide to center if he’s still outplaying Victor Scott II at that point.

Scott’s home run was a solo shot off Braxton Ashcraft in the sixth inning. The 25-year-old outfielder is out there for his speed and defense, but is hitting just .192 with three steals. It’s fair to wonder how much longer the Cardinals might stick with Scott over an intriguing prospect like Joshua Báez.

It’s fair to wonder how much longer the Cardinals will continue sticking with Scott, despite his defensive abilities, since he’s hitting .197/.254/.213 with three steals in 24 games this season. They have top prospect Joshua Báez, who has homered five times in 21 games at Triple-A Memphis this season, waiting on the doorstep of the majors if they decide to make a change in the near future. Báez is striking out nearly 30 percent of the time and could use some additional seasoning, but Scott’s lack of production figures to shorten his timeline to the big leagues.

The 24-year-old outfielder led off the third inning with a single and swiped second base, but the Cardinals were unable to cash him in from there. He also smacked a two-out double in the fifth inning but was left stranded there. He finishes the 2025 season slashing .216/.305/.296 with five homers, 37 RBI and 34 stolen bases (in 38 attempts).

Because of what he brings to the table defensively, Scott’s lack of offense isn’t as much of a problem as, let’s say, Jordan Walker’s. Still, it’s pretty sad that he’s mustered only a .214/.304/.293 line at age 24. He was even worse as a rookie last year, but his 33% hard-hit rate in 53 games as a major leaguer was sort of encouraging. This year, he’s at 26%, which is the seventh lowest mark of the 210 players with at least 400 plate appearances. The Cardinals will surely stick with him next year, but there isn’t much reason to think he’s about to bust out.

Scott, out since August 17 with a sprained ankle, went 1-for-8 on a three-game rehab assignment. He’s not in today’s lineup, but he’ll likely return to being the Cardinals’ primary center fielder, with Nathan Church heading to the bench. Both are left-handed hitters, so there’s no good way for them to share time.

Scott is aiming to return at the end of his injured list stint since he’s merely dealing with swelling and pain tolerance issues in his left ankle. It certainly sounds like there’s optimism he’ll return by late August or early September.

No word yet on the severity, which will determine how much time Scott misses. The 24-year-old speedy center fielder has hit .223/.311/.312 with five homers and 31 steals in 402 plate appearances over 116 games this season. He’s never going to be a power threat, but 31 steals is a bit underwhelming given his minor-league track record on the bases.

Scott drew a one-out walk off of Sandy Alcantara in the third inning, swiped second base and advanced to third on a line out to center, but the Cardinals couldn’t cash him in from there. The 24-year-old speedster then walked in the fifth inning and again nabbed second but was left stranded there. On the season, he’s now hitting .227/.316/.322 with five homers, 33 RBI and 29 stolen bases (in 31 attempts).

The homer came in garbage time, but still counts. It’s the fifth homer for the 24-year-old outfielder and his OPS is now .647 on the season. Scott is carried by his stolen bases with 22 in 2025, but there’s been just-enough pop to suggest he could help in more categories in the coming years. You just can’t count on it for 2025.