Nathan Church

Nathan Church
St. Louis Cardinals – No. 27
Outfielder
Born: (2000-07-12) July 12, 2000 (age 26)
Newport Beach, California, U.S.
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
MLB debut
August 17, 2025, for the St. Louis Cardinals
MLB statistics
(through 2026 season)
Batting average.239
Home runs11
Runs batted in58
Stats at Baseball Reference Edit this at Wikidata
Teams

Nathan Michael Church (born July 12, 2000) is an American professional baseball outfielder for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2025.

Amateur career

Church attended El Toro High School in Lake Forest, California, where he was teammates with Paul Skenes. He played college baseball at the University of California, Irvine for the Anteaters. As a junior in 2022, he hit .309 with five home runs and 38 RBI over 53 games.

Professional career

Church was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 11th round of the 2022 Major League Baseball draft and signed for $125,000. After signing with St. Louis, Church made his professional debut with the Palm Beach Cardinals, hitting .189 over 27 games. He was assigned to the Peoria Chiefs for the 2023 season and batted .279 with three home runs, 44 RBI, and 21 stolen bases over 119 games. He spent the 2024 season with the Springfield Cardinals, batting .268 with nine home runs, 66 RBI, and 24 stolen bases over 127 games. Following the season's end, he was assigned to play in the Arizona Fall League with the Glendale Desert Dogs.

Church was assigned to Springfield to open the 2025 season and was promoted to the Triple-A Memphis Redbirds in early June. He was named the Texas League Player of the Month in May for his performance with Springfield. In 53 appearances for Memphis, Church had a .335/.400/.521 slash line with seven home runs, 30 RBI, and nine stolen bases. On August 17, 2025, Church was selected to the 40-man roster and promoted to the major leagues for the first time. He made his MLB debut that night at Busch Stadium versus the New York Yankees, starting in center field and going hitless over four at-bats. He recorded both his first hit and first MLB home run on August 22 versus Adrian Houser of the Tampa Bay Rays at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Church played in 27 games for the Cardinals and hit .179 with one home run and eight RBI.

Church made the Cardinals' Opening Day roster in 2026. He started in left field for the Cardinals on Opening Day versus the Tampa Bay Rays. On May 22, Church was placed on the injured list with a left shoulder strain, and he was activated on June 9. He played the entirety of the season with St. Louis as the team's starting center fielder, and ended the season with a .247/.290/.365 slash line with 10 home runs, 50 RBI, 17 doubles, and 10 stolen bases in 15 attempts.

References

  1. ↑ "How did Skenes repay HS mentor? By striking him out in 1st MLB showdown". MLB.com. Retrieved June 18, 2026.
  2. ↑ "UC Irvine baseball looks to stay atop the Big West". February 18, 2022.
  3. ↑ "Cardinals' Nathan Church looking to make the most of his early opportunity | Sporting News". www.sportingnews.com. March 31, 2026. Retrieved June 18, 2026.
  4. ↑ "St. Louis Cardinals complete 2022 MLB Draft". MLB.com.
  5. ↑ "Nathan Church leads red hot Cardinals into Springfield homestand". April 24, 2024.
  6. ↑ "Armed with save-first mentality, Svanson leads Cards prospects in AFL". MLB.com.
  7. ↑ "Once overlooked, Springfield's Nathan Church is forcing people to pay attention". May 14, 2025.
  8. ↑ "Nathan Church named Texas League Player of the Month".
  9. ↑ "Cardinals Place Victor Scott II On IL, Select Nathan Church". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved August 17, 2025.
  10. ↑ "Cardinals' Nathan Church: Promoted for MLB debut". CBS Sports. August 17, 2025. Retrieved December 26, 2025.
  11. ↑ Denton, John (August 23, 2025). "Nathan Church collects first MLB hit, home run in same game". MLB.com. Retrieved November 4, 2025.
  12. ↑ Murphy, Brian. "As Cards eye OF help, Church eager to provide boost they're seeking". MLB.com. Retrieved February 25, 2026.
  13. ↑ "Top Cardinals prospect JJ Wetherholt makes Opening Day roster". ESPN.com. Associated Press. March 23, 2026. Retrieved March 24, 2026.
  14. ↑ Guerrero, Daniel (March 26, 2026). "After making spring strides, Nathan Church gets opening day look in left: Cardinals Extra". STLtoday.com. Retrieved June 15, 2026.
  15. ↑ "Cardinals' Nathan Church: Lands on IL with shoulder strain". CBS Sports. May 22, 2026. Retrieved June 15, 2026.
  16. ↑ "'Everyday center fielder' Church crashes into fence, bounces hit off bag in Cards' loss". MLB.com. Retrieved October 1, 2026.