ST. LOUIS -- All-Star second baseman Brendan Donovan was scratched from the St. Louis Cardinals ' lineup Saturday night due to tightness in his left groin.

Donovan was initially scheduled to bat leadoff against the Chicago Cubs . The team said the move was for precautionary reasons.

Chosen as an All-Star for the first time this season as a reserve, Donovan leads the Cardinals with 115 hits while hitting .278 this season. However, he's struggled in 18 games since the All-Star break, with a .188 average and three extra-base hits. He has only five hits in his last 11 games, all singles.

Donovan was replaced at second base by Thomas Saggese , and the Cardinals shuffled their lineup to move center fielder Lars Nootbaar to the leadoff spot.

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