Adam Wainwright was a cheerleader on the St. Louis Cardinals’ 2011 World Series title team, out the entire year following reconstructive elbow surgery, suiting up and slapping fives in the dugout.
The staff ace of the NL Central leaders might be reduced to that status again from an injury that came with him batting.
The two-time 20-game winner was set to undergo an MRI exam Monday to determine the extent of an injury to his left Achilles and ankle. He’s already on the 15-day disabled list and the team was bracing for bad news, leaving the 6-foot-7 right-hander to put a brave face on a dire scenario.
“There’s nothing I can do about it, so might as well not be nervous about it or worried about it,” Wainwright said after Sunday’s 6-3 loss at Milwaukee. “Worry doesn’t do anybody any good.”
The 33-year-old Wainwright had to be helped off the field after getting injured stumbling out of the batter’s box after popping out in the fifth inning Saturday, saying the “foot just shut down on me.”