Was it closure or the start of a comeback?
When St. Louis Cardinals' veteran pitcher Adam Wainwright climbed the hill at Busch Stadium for his first appearance and start since May, all bets were off. The 36-year-old pitcher in the last year of his contract with the team wasn't pitching for his lunch money, but also wasn't guaranteed a full-time rotation spot.
The Cardinals took a gamble with Wainwright on the mound, and in the end, the results were predictable. Five innings pitched, four runs allowed, three strikeouts, and zero walks. Wainwright threw 81 pitches, 56 of which went for strikes, and his fastball started in the lower 90's before settling into the upper 80's.
Make no mistake, Wainwright pitched most of Monday night on guts, glory, and a curveball that still managed to bedevil Major League hitters. He retired the last nine Pirates that he faced, and gave the Cardinals a chance.
The Cardinals managed to steal the game with a couple late-game offensive bursts, with the latter coming off a three-run Matt Adams home run, which was his third in a week. The bullpen made it close, allowing three runs of their own in four innings of work, with Carlos Martinez getting the save in a dicey ninth inning.
The thrilling 8-7 win didn't hide any qualms about Wainwright's future. Afterwards, the talk of the town surrounded his future role with the team. With games at a premium, will Mike Shildt and the Cardinals give him another start, which would fall this weekend on Sunday Night Baseball against the Los Angeles Dodgers? Or does Wainwright go to the bullpen as a long reliever?
Opinions were all over the place, with 101.1 ESPN sports columnist and radio host Bernie Miklasz chiming in during Monday's game. Miklasz was frustrated with the Cardinals rolling out a nostalgia show instead of buckling down and going for the win. Wainwright had a little something to say about that after the 8-7 win.
Here's the thing. Miklasz didn't say anything out of touch or disrespectful, and neither did Wainwright. It was a good old-fashioned back and forth that shows how the snark in this town hasn't disappeared completely with the passion of Joe Strauss. It just goes to show you that the next step won't exactly be easy for the Cardinals to make.
The whole idea of giving Wainwright another shot at the rotation came down to two things: the fact that Wainwright hasn't been a steady bullpen arm in quite some time and that the younger arms in the rotation need rest this month. At the same time, there are games to win and few to spare due to a chance to honor one of the organization's best pitchers in franchise history.
Do you pitch Wainwright on Sunday? The Dodgers rank second in the Majors in home runs (200) and sixth in slugging percentage (43%). They could do some serious damage to the Wainwright legacy and potentially hurt the Cardinals' playoff hopes and cripple their chances at a division title.
Giving Wainwright the opportunity to find out what was left wasn't a bad idea. He picked up strikeout #1,600 in the second inning and finished with a flourish. However, he gave up four runs in five innings, and the Pirates teed off on him at times. He showed decreased velocity in his latter innings, getting hitters out on luck and smarts. That may not work against the Dodgers, whom the Cardinals are battling for a wildcard spot. The reality may be that Monday represents Wainwright's best outcome as a starter, and that won't due for the Cardinals. With a leaking bullpen, the starters need to be crisp.
If the Cardinals are serious about winning this month, Wainwright should now head to the bullpen as long relief. He got his start and looked okay at best, yet didn't show the polish that should reward him with a start over a guy like Daniel Poncedeleon, who will start this week as the Cardinals shift their rotation to give arms like Jack Flaherty extra rest.
The Cardinals should roll out the rest of 2018 with a rotation of Miles Mikolas, Jack Flaherty, Austin Gomber, John Gant, and Daniel Poncedeleon. Those five guys give you a better chance to win than Wainwright does, and that's cold, hard truth. As Miklasz rightfully pointed out, nostalgia can't get in the way of results.
If the Cardinals were out of the playoff race, you could run with Wainwright in his final September in St. Louis. But things are different now, with the Cardinals sitting two games out in front of Los Angeles for the second wildcard spot, so you can't mess around. There's a fair argument to be made that suggests the Cardinals were lucky on Monday, bailing Wainwright out after a 4-0 early deficit. It's an argument that tromps any defense that he should get another start.
Wainwright got his rotation shot, and it didn't end terribly. He looked good at times, bad at others, and finished strong. In the end, it was a performance that should shift his role now to the bullpen, where he could spell rookies who hit a wall in their starts. It's that time now where Wainwright should back up the younger arms. As I pointed out in last week's column, you can't hand anyone in this league honorary starts, especially in a playoff race. Wainwright showed some teeth on his rehab trail, and hit a predictable wall back in the Majors.
On Monday night, Cardinals fans gathered to see Wainwright make another run at Father Time. It's hard to imagine this is his final hurrah in St. Louis, the culmination of a 13-year run. The takeaway from the start was the end is closer than most would like. Wainwright hasn't completely lost his touch, but he doesn't have enough to start games.
Seeing what he can do out of the bullpen is now the smart play for the Cardinals.
