An inside look at the resurgence of Adam Wainwright.

(Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)

Let me take you back to May 13th 2018. The Cardinals were in San Diego facing the Padres and Adam Wainwright was making the start, his first since a return from the injured list. The return did not go well at all. Wainwright didn’t make it out of the third inning. He struggled to throw strikes and his velocity was completely gone. Wainwright has since admitted to reporters that he thought his career may have been over at that point. He knew that if he was going to stay in the big leagues, he was going to have to find a way to reinvent himself.

Fast forward 3 1/2 years later. It’s September 2021, The Cardinals are right in the thick of a playoff chase, and 40 year old Adam Wainwright is leading the way. In a year where the Cardinals have been without ace Jack Flaherty for a good portion of the season, Wainwright has once again become the ace of the club.

So what happened? How did Wainwright go from nearly being forced to retire to regaining his Cy Young caliber form? It starts with the way he throws the ball. In 2018 during that disastrous start against the Padres, Wainwright noted the constant elbow pain he was dealing with when he threw. Part of his resurgence has been changing slightly the angle at which he throws the ball. One that minimizes his pain and has allowed him to regain velocity.

Another big part is his best pitch. Wainwright has always been known for his curveball, the good old uncle charlie. The last few years has seen Wainwright rely more and more on the curve to get batters out. He’s gone to throwing the curve nearly 35% of the time. He then uses a good mix of his fastball and cutter to add to the curve.

Finally, one big thing that cannot be forgotten is (in my opinion) the best defensive catcher in the history of the game. Yadier Molina. Wainwright and Molina have now been a battery for over 300 games and could very well break the record for most appearances between battery mates. Molina and Wainwright have been an excellent duo for well over a decade now and their partnership has definitely played a huge impact in the resurgence of Adam Wainwright.

In 2018, we thought Adam Wainwright was done for. He walked off the mound in San Diego wondering if he would ever pitch again. 3 years later, He’s a 16 game winner with an ERA under 3 and a WAR of 4. Will he win the Cy Young this year? Probably not with guys like Max Scherzer and Corbin Burnes in the mix. But I firmly believe he should get some votes. The Cardinals are on the verge of making the playoffs in a year where they looked down and out in June, and a big reason why is #50 back on the hill and back to his dominant self.