The Cardinals are currently 12-4 with their next 5 games against 2 of the worst teams in baseball. They are in striking distance of once of the best Aprils in team history.
So why’s everybody like:
— FOTUS (@JFeRg52) April 26, 2015
Adam Wainwright has been officially placed on the 15-day disabled list as of Sunday morning. He will have an MRI on Monday to see the severity of his achilles injury. The Cardinals are preparing as if he’ s out for the season.
+++++
Damn, I really, really hated writing that headline.
+++++
The official announcement of a rupture is a formality. All elements of the injury are present, including a ‘pop’ sound that Wainwright heard trying to push off from the box running to first base and the initial bout of numbness he experienced after the play well into the evening.
Typical recovery times after surgery for achilles ruptures vary, but the normal range is 4-6 months. The very best scenario would be a September/October stint out of the bullpen, al la Mike Wacha in 2015 (hopefully sans the same results).
It’s a big blow at exactly the wrong time.
Both Marco Gonzales and Jaime Garcia are currently injured. So the natural replacements for Wainwright’s turn in the rotation are not immediately available. Further, the team is in the front end of a 20-game in 20 days stretch, not allowing them to temporarily hurl 4.
Marco Gonzales (shoulder tightness) will not be ready to make spot start on Thursday. Expect it to go to either Cooney or Lyons. #stlcards
— Jenifer Langosch (@LangoschMLB) April 26, 2015
This one hurts.
The Cardinals starting pitching has been historically good the first few weeks of the season. And to have the ace and leader of the staff shelved with a injury running out a pop-fly?
Insult meet injury.
I don’t think that there’s a single person that doesn’t wish Mr. Wainwright an expedient and total recovery. We’re all pretty confident that he’ll be around the team most of the year encouraging their successes on the field. And at the end of the day, he’s not putting another 150-200 innings on his arm. He’ll be ready to go in 2016.
But we haven’t even got to summer ’15, so everyone will have to try real hard to not play the ‘what if’ game with Wain-O and carry on.
Sucks, I know.
Real bad.
But other teams on other days in other places will face their own adversities. The Cardinals won’t be the only team to lose a star player. Injuries are the one part of the winning sports equation that can never be correctly accounted for.
Everyone has to step up into the void. They wouldn’t be on the roster if the Cardinals didn’t think they could.
+++++
Oh, and to all the people on Twitter pointing out that the last time that Wainwright was out for a season (2011), the Birds won the World Series?
https://twitter.com/landsharksteven/status/592343670839382016
https://twitter.com/Dainty_Dani/status/592340909292847104
The last time Adam Wainwright missed significant time in a season was 2011 (Tommy John Surgery). The Cardinals won the World Series
— Richard K (@R_Walski) April 26, 2015
Stop.
I know we’re all dealing with the shock and sadness in our own way. But that’s like saying because this lady and I both like Hardee’s we’re probably going to end up getting married.
Hope it’s true – but there isn’t any correlation. And it mitigates Wainwright’s importance to the Cardinals.
Much more to come as this story develops over the next couple of days.
Photo: Washington Post
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
