ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - If St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Paul DeJong can get healthy and kick things into gear offensively, we might be naming a new local forest after him. He's partnered with a non-profit environmental company that will plant 110 trees for every one of his extra-base hits this season.
DeJong is one of several MLB players to partner with Players for the Planet – a company founded by former MLB outfielder Chris Dickerson – and global reforestation company One Tree Planted. The trees that are going to be planted through this pledge will be used to address tree canopy loss in urban neighborhoods.
Let's see how many trees DeJong can "plant" this year...
He currently has three doubles and seven home runs in 35 games this season. That's already 1,100 trees. But right now, unfortunately, the 27-year-old is rehabbing from a non-displaced rib fracture after getting it by a pitch in May. The good news is, DeJong has appeared in two Triple-A games and has a double in five at bats.
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If DeJong comes back within the next week, he'll have about 100 games left to keep building his forest.
Just for comparison, if this partnership was in place during the last full MLB season of 2019 – when DeJong was named to the All-Star Game – his 31 doubles, one triple and 30 home runs would have led to 6,820 trees planted. That would equal just over 15% of the trees in Forest Park.
The final total of trees to be planted through DeJong's pledge will contribute to a reforestation project as well as community events, which will be announced at a later date, according to Players for the Planet.
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