Season Over for Cardinals ? Adam Wainwright's Injury: Can St. Louis Cards take the hit

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Adam Wainwright's Injury: Doom for the Cardinals?

February 27, 2011

Now that Cardinals star pitcher Adam Wainwright transitions to the injured list, can St. Louis take the hit?
 Y BARBARA MANINGAT
Anchor: Austin Kim

You're watching multisource sports news analysis from Newsy


Spirits of St. Louis Cardinals fans are flying LOW, now that star pitcher Adam Wainwright is officially out for the 2011 season. That’s got the blogosphere and some baseball fanatics in a panic, wondering -- what to do without Wainwright!

He’s going to need Tommy John surgery -- basically, a reconstruction of ligaments in the elbow that will force this top-ranked big-league to ride the pine for 12-18 months.
(Video from MLB)

So how are they going to fill the rotation? Fox Sports analysts say budget restrictions will keep the owners looking internally.

“Well, the Cardinals have immediately contacted Kevin Milwood’s agent. He’s a guy that might fit in the back end. The problem is they don’t have any money to spend. They’ve already gone beyond what their budget is. They’re not going to get any insurance money this year for Adam Wainwright getting hurt, so i think they’re going to look at options in-house first.”

Fox Sports caught up with Wainwright’s teammates, who have confidence in the current roster.

MATT HOLLIDAY: “You know, it’s a big loss for us, but I think we have the talent in this room to overcome it.”
KYLE MCCLELLAN: “If I am given the opportunity, it’s an opportunity for me to jump in and just try to do the best I can and try and help this club.”

But one National League scout told ESPN how the loss might affect the Cards’ mentality and reputation.

"When you lose a guy like this, there's a psychological devastation. He's their No. 1. He's their rock... And it even affects other teams going in to play them. Instead of saying, 'Uh-oh, we've got to face Carpenter and Wainwright in this series,' now you're going to go get two out of three and feel pretty good about it.”

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Bernie Miklasz says it’s just the beginning of the swan dive -- and with the Cards already missing the playoffs in the last four of five seasons, they may also lose the best player in the league, Albert Pujols, in 2012.

“Losing Wainwright likely will hit the team's finances... Home attendance dropped in 2010... At that point Pujols might be more inclined to take his talents to a wealthier, more financially empowered franchise that packs enough payroll to offset injuries.”

Yep. Sounds like the death of the red birds -- but SB Nation says, check out the stats!

“...they still show up as the favorites, winning the Central 38 percent of the time and still ahead of the Brewers (33 percent) and Reds (19 percent)... So yes, it's a tough blow. But no, it's far from devastating. Based on the numbers, the Cardinals are still in pretty good shape.”

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