Wainwright, Cardinals get deal for 2022; ace starts WC game

Published Oct. 1, 2021 9:46 p.m. ET

Associated Press

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Longtime St. Louis ace Adam Wainwright will return next season, the club announced five days ahead of his next big start for the Cardinals.

The 40-year-old Wainwright and the Cardinals reached agreement on a one-year contract for 2022, the team said before Friday night's game against the Chicago Cubs. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Wainwright is set to pitch Wednesday night in the NL wild-card game, on the road against either the Los Angeles Dodgers or San Francisco Giants. He is 17-7 with a 3.05 ERA.

The three-time All-Star will spend his 18th year with the Cardinals in 2022, tying Hall of Famer Jesse Haines for the most years as a pitcher with the team.

“I don’t want to be anywhere else,” Wainwright said. “Who am I kidding?”

Wainwright is 184-105 with a 3.35 ERA in 425 games, 358 of them starts, while spending his entire career with the Cardinals.

“Adam has built a legacy that has placed him among the greatest players in Cardinals franchise history,” team chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. said. “Beginning with his memorable playoff and World Series clinching outs in 2006, and to this day, still leading our staff as one of the game’s top pitchers, Adam has represented the Cardinals and St. Louis with great pride.”

Said John Mozeliak, the team's president of baseball operations: “Adam has been a constant for the Cardinals for nearly two decades. ... He continues to perform at an elite level that is historic in nature."

Wainwright served as the team’s closer in 2006, famously striking out Carlos Beltran of the New York Mets to clinch game 7 before saving Game 5 of the World Series against the Detroit Tigers to win the championship.

Wainwright and Hall of Famer Bob Gibson are the only pitchers to have recorded over 2,000 strikeouts for the Cardinals.

On Aug. 25, the Cardinals signed star catcher Yadier Molina for the 2022 season.

Wainwright and Molina currently rank fourth all-time in games started by battery mates with 304. Wainwright indicated that the return of Molina played a big part in wanting to return.

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