St. Louis Cardinals: Jeremy Hazelbaker an early success story

By Tim Haberin | Apr 12, 2016

Apr 11, 2016; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals right fielder Jeremy Hazelbaker (41) follows through on a hit against the Milwaukee Brewers at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports /

The St. Louis Cardinals’ most unexpected early season development may be the sudden emergence of 28-year-old Jeremy Hazelbaker.

Jeremy Hazelbaker has started just four of the St. Louis Cardinals‘ seven games thus far in 2016, but the outfielder might be the most surprising and intriguing story coming out of the club after a week of action.

If you hadn’t heard of Hazelbaker before this week, you’re probably not alone. At 28 years of age (and 29 in August), he’s downright long in the tooth for a player making his MLB debut. A fourth-round draftee of the Boston Red Sox in 2009, Hazelbaker bounced around between the Sox, Dodgers and Cardinals farm systems over the next few years.

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His career minor league statistics aren’t much to write home about. He owns a .264/.341/.434 slash line across seven seasons in the minors, making himself known more for his speed than anything else. Hazelbaker swiped an eye-catching 63 bags in 2010 for the Class-A Greenville Drive and stole a total of 165 over the following five campaigns.

Hazelbaker has already stolen two bases in two attempts for the Cards in the early going of this season, but what he has really made an impact with so far is his bat. In 23 plate appearances, he has racked up 10 hits, six for extra bases (two doubles, a triple and two home runs). He has also walked twice and driven in five runs. That all makes for a very gaudy .526/.522/1.053 line in his first taste of big league action.

Hazelbaker made the Cardinals roster out of Spring Training when Ruben Tejada needed to start the year on the disabled list. He definitely earned the opportunity after a strong spring in which he posted a .916 OPS, three homers and 10 RBIs in 46 at-bats.

The power surge has continued into the regular season, but Hazelbaker didn’t begin the year in the starting lineup. He was limited to pinch-hit appearances in the season’s first two games before getting his first start in center field on April 6. Since then he’s started three out of four games for the Redbirds and there’s no reason to think they won’t ride the hot hand as long as they can.

The Cards’ young season in general has been a tale of two extremes. They were swept by the division rival Pittsburgh Pirates in a season-opening three-game set, then whipped out some brooms of their own in winning three straight against the Atlanta Braves. A victory in their home opener yesterday (a game in which Hazelbaker went 4-for-4) over the Milwaukee Brewers has extended their winning streak to four games.

St. Louis will hope to show a little more consistency in the weeks and months ahead, and it remains to be seen whether Hazelbaker continues playing such a big role. His early torrid pace has certainly helped offset the ugly start from fellow outfielder Randal Grichuk (.167/.348/.222). Hazelbaker will surely cool off at some point, but the Cardinals believe he can keep contributing all year.

General manager John Mozeliak said:

"“From an offensive standpoint, he can be someone that can hit the ball out of the ballpark, but also can get down the bunt. So, he has a lot of flexibility in his game and, when you play like that, that’s really easy for a manager to find use for you.”"

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He also praised his speed and defense as assets that can ensure his continued usefulness to the team. Hazelbaker will try to keep his dream start going tomorrow when the Cards take on the Brewers once again at Busch Stadium.

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