This past week, it was announced that Carlos Martinez will be our Opening Day starter. Adam Wainwright will be our #2 starter. The phrase "passing of the torch" was mentioned on a constant loop. My mind was perfectly accepting of this and not even surprised. My heart took a minute though. Or a few days. As I predicted, he handled the news with grace. He was proud of Carlos and he respects him. The feeling is mutual. It's obvious that Carlos respects and appreciates Adam.
For those who may not know, Adam Wainwright is the reason I'm writing this, the reason I'm on Twitter to find other people who love the Cardinals as much as I do and the reason I love the Cardinals at all. In 2006, as I watched him close the NLCS game 7, I fell in love with baseball, especially Cardinals baseball. The strikeout of Beltran was a completely magical moment for me. Everything about that last out was beautiful.
We are blessed beyond belief to have one of the very best leaders on our team that you could ever hope to have in Adam. He is all heart, the glue keeping them together. He is the constant cheerleader, the mentor, the dancer and the one with the greatest smile (although Carlos can give him a lot of competition). Adam puts his arm around Wacha when he's having a tough day on the mound. He brags about everyone on our team, especially Yadi and Carlos...so very proud of his teammates. Waino is unquestionably there for everyone. Even when you don't ask, he'll find a way...just ask Ryan Sheriff.
As Twitter discusses Yadi's contract negotiations, a few times it pops up from some that they're okay if Adam doesn't retire here. I hope with all of my heart, they both retire Cardinals. Adam has been saying for years that he never wants to play anywhere else. He loves the Cardinals and he loves us.
Career highlights: 3 time All Star
2 time Gold Glover
NL wins leader two years
Cy Young top 3 candidate 4 times
2014-first pitcher in MLB history to have 7 innings pitched w/no runs allowed in
9 of his first 18 starts (insanely fun year to watch)
3rd all time Cardinals in strikeouts, trailing only Gibby & Carp
Career ERA 3.17 with .638 win/loss %
I went back and forth on including his accomplishments. I ultimately decided to share a smidge as a little reminder to some who may have forgotten how good he's actually been.
It's difficult to mention Adam without thinking of his charitable work. Receiving the Clemente Award has always been the bigger honor and goal for him over the Cy Young. His work has changed lives and that is extraordinary. He has a very generous, caring spirit and you always have to hope that rubs off on everyone around him.
2017 will be a good year for Adam. Being strong, healthy, smart and hard working, he will figure everything out. My faith has always been there and always will be. Everyone has a guy on the team that is their favorite, the one they cheer for no matter what. Maybe it's a couple guys or even a few. It might change every year or every decade for some, but mine is constant. Adam Wainwright is the reason I love baseball...I owe him.
Along with "passing the torch" sometimes comes the phrase "closing the book" or "turning the page." As the torch was passed to Adam, I knew the day would come that he would pass the torch to someone else. And we can turn the page on last season's struggles. All I ask is that you don't close the book on Adam. He's still writing this book. He's still got a few chapters to go. It's already been a best seller for me.
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