The sun broke through in an unexpectedly cloudy season for the St. Louis Cardinals. 18-year veteran and future Hall-of-Famer Adam Wainwright tallied his 200th career win in Monday night’s 1-0 victory over the Brewers.
He becomes the 122 pitcher in baseball history and the third pitcher in the historic Cardinals franchise to get to 200. Bob Gibson and Jesse Haines are the only others to get there for St. Louis.
Monday night gave us one final glimpse of the magic we know Wainwright possesses. In the midst of the worst season of his career, Waino showed his vintage self. He went seven strong, giving up four hits and no runs. It was the only start of Wainwright’s season where he didn’t give up a run.
Wainwright, now in his 18th season in the MLB, has spent all his time in St. Louis. He created a core memory for Cardinal fans worldwide when he slammed the door in game five of the 2006 World Series. Wainwright earned a spot in the starting rotation after recording the final out in the first Cardinals championship in over 20 years.
Since 2007, Wainwright has started at least 20 games 13 times. He ranks fifth in both innings pitched (2668.1) and games started (411) by an active pitcher. Waino’s career peaked from 2009 to 2014. He was outstanding, finishing top-20 in MVP voting four out of five years. He gathered all three of his All-Star roster nods during that time.
Waino could never reach the top of the podium in Cy Young voting, but he took a comfortable position in the top three four times during his career.
The Georgia native has ridden his cutter, curveball one-two punch his whole career. Since entering the league in 2005, Wainwright’s cutter ranks fourth in wFC (cutter runs above average) with 84.7. His 133.5 wCU (curveball runs above average) ranks first by nearly 10 points.
In the 2022 offseason, the Cardinals resigned Wainwright to a one-year $17.5 million deal as the 40-year-old felt he had more to give. The Cardinals made the deal early into the offseason, with the taste of his terrible closing month still fresh in their mouth.
In his last six starts of the 2022 season, Wainwright had a 7.22 ERA. St. Louis hoped this was just out of character, but this was just a precursor of what was to come.
Wainwright’s age 41 season might go down as one of the worst seasons in history, slightly tainting his illustrious career. His pursuit of 200 wins may have blinded him during the 2023 season. Wainwright is having a tough season, but his tenacity is one to be admired. He entered the season with 195 wins, and it took 20 starts to record the past four.
His 7.40 ERA would be the fourth-highest single-season ERA in history if he doesn’t pitch again this season. His Fielding Independent Pitching (5.99), a stat that takes out the defense and relies on the three true outcomes: homerun, strikeout, walk, is third last in the league of pitchers that have thrown 100 or more innings.
With only 55 strikeouts on the season, looking at his Baseball Savant is genuinely comedic. He ranks in the first (worst) percentile in practically everything. He is last in pitching run value, fastball run value, xERA, xBA, fastball velocity, whiff%, K%, and chase%. The 41-year-old legend is the worst pitcher in baseball this season, and he is still consistently trotting out to the mound every fifth day.
Despite the pain it took to reach this point of the 2023 season, Adam Wainwright should be celebrated for this incredible feat. He joins a list of legends as he becomes the fifth active pitcher to reach 200 wins. Alongside Justin Verlander, Zack Greinke, Max Scherzer, and Clayton Kershaw.
The style in which baseball is played now and how the game has evolved has shifted expectations out of pitchers. Complete games have become much more of a spectacle than they used to be. When Pedro Martinez was 33 in 2005, his first season with the Mets, he threw four complete games. Sandy Alcantara and Jordan Lyles are tied for the league lead with three in 2023. Getting a win and pitching a complete game is not nearly the same. I know that. But it shows how much the game and expectations have changed over 20 years.
Along with the depreciation of the win stat, pitchers are used differently, and the next 200-win pitcher may be a lot further away than people realize.
Wainwright has announced he is retiring when the season ends at the end of the month. He is scheduled to go out with a bang, as a concert is set after the conclusion of game 162. The headliner? You guessed it, Adam Wainwright. The country lover will debut three songs during his farewell concert at Busch Stadium.
Wainwright’s fantastic personality will be missed around the league, but rumors have already begun swirling surrounding him joining a broadcast booth. Hopefully, Waino will keep a presence in Major League Baseball after he ends his time as a player.
