Lars Nootbaar brings ‘grind-it-out spirit’ to Japan and WBC

By STEPHEN WADE
AP Sports Writer

TOKYO (AP) — St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar has suddenly become a popular star playing for Japan in the World Baseball Classic. He’s qualified by ancestry because of his mother’s Japanese roots. He made two diving catches in the first two games and also had two hits in each. He says his family in Japan is proud and adds “it’s cool for me too to be able to do that for them. I don’t get to talk to them very often, to see them very often. To be able to connect me and my family together from opposite sides of the world. It’s a pretty special moment for me.”