Most teams who go through a rebuild, like the St. Louis Cardinals currently are, go through a testing period or experiment as it tries to find places for various players.

The Cardinals are currently in that period and a long-time infielder is one of the recipients of that mindset.

Thomas Saggese, who, by his own admission, hasn't played in the outfield since he was in little league, made his first spring start in the grass in St. Louis' 9-4 Grapefruit League game against the Houston Astros on Thursday.

Saggese, who played in left field, went 1-for-2 at the plate and drew a walk.

After the game, Saggese had a humorous response when asked how it was to play the outfield for the first time since he was a child.

"It's lonely out there," Saggese said according to a post on "X" from Belleville News-Democrat reporter Jeff Jones.

Saggese was originally selected out of high school by the Texas Rangers in the fifth round of the 2020 MLB Draft.

The 23-year-old lasted three years with the franchise and was traded to the Cardinals, alongside left-handed pitcher John King and left-handed pitcher Tekoah Roby, in return for left-handed pitcher Jordan Montgomery and right-handed pitcher Chris Stratton on July 30, 2023.

Saggese made his major league debut for St. Louis in 2024, playing just 18 games. He had an extended stint in the major leagues last season and played 82 games.

Across his limited looks of big league action over the last two seasons, Saggese has slashed .250/.292/.336 with a .628 OPS and has hit 19 doubles and three home runs with 29 RBIs in 100 games.

Saggese has registered over 100 innings at second base (369.1 innings), shortstop (266.1) and third base (134), respectively, in his major league career. He's registered a .972 fielding percentage and has committed just 10 errors in 326 total chances.

This spring, Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom has made it clear that the team is looking for a right-handed outfielder to shore up the roster going into this regular season.

Before this spring, Saggese hasn't fit the bill of an outfielder, but he is a right-handed hitter.

If Saggese is able to prove that he can consistently play the outfield and couples that with his ability to play the infield, he could end up a reliable super-utility player for St. Louis.

Saggese is currently begin the season with Triple-A according to projections from FanGraphs.

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