Breaking: Wainwright to Start Season on IL

Mar 23, 2023 - 2:40 PM
MLB: Spring Training-Houston Astros at <a href=St. Louis Cardinals" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/oC_knR4kAY4YrRzci5VdwUXfQXE=/0x0:4650x2616/1920x1080/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/72106188/usa_today_20124983.0.jpg" />
Rhona Wise-USA TODAY Sports




John Denton from MLB.com is reporting that Adam Wainwright will start the season on the IL after suffering a groin injury during a training session at the World Baseball Classic.

Wainwright had been set to start Opening Day in what is expected to be his final season in the majors.

There is no word at this time on who will replace Wainwright for the Opening Day start. It seems likely that either Miles Mikolas or Jack Flaherty would get the nod.

Meanwhile, it appears that Jake Woodford will take Wainwright’s spot in the rotation. After falling out of favor last season, Woodford followed the club’s action plan, working on his slider and adding velocity. The results have shown this spring. Woodford has a 2.04 ERA this spring with more strikeouts than innings pitched.

John Denton also reported that Rule 5 acquisition Wilking Rodriguez was heading to the IL:

Rodriguez won’t throw for at least a week. Then he’ll face reevaluation and rehabilitation.

These two IL moves, plus the optioning of Dakota Hudson to AAA, clear much of the drama from the pitching side of the final Spring Training roster cuts. Andre Pallante, who has more than earned a spot on the club with his performance but was looking at AAA just because of numbers, is now a virtual lock for the Opening Day roster. It’s also likely that one of the lefties — Packy Naughton, Genesis Cabrera, or JoJo Romero — will make the club out of spring.

We will update this story if additional news breaks.


Update: The battle for the lefty bullpen spot got a little clearer today.








No one has shouted yet.
Be the first!