St. Louis Cardinals Could Take Drastic Step with Franchise Legend as Milestone Looms

As the St. Louis Cardinals are mired in dreadful 53-66 season, they could be ready to take the drastic step of moving franchise icon Adam Wainwright to the bullpen.

The following update comes from the Rotowire fantasy baseball portal:

Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said Wainwright's role will be reevaluated after his next start Thursday against the Mets, John Denton of MLB.com reports.

ANALYSIS
Wainwright got roughed up again last Friday in Kansas City, yielding eight earned runs while recording only three outs as his season ERA climbed to 8.78. He is just two wins away from reaching 200 career victories, but the 41-year-old right-hander might actually have a better shot at achieving that milestone in a piggyback relief role. "We've talked to him, and he understands that he's got to do better," Mozeliak said of Wainwright. "He's appreciative that he's getting the opportunity [on Thursday], but he understands that things could change [in the future]."

There's several different ways of looking at this, really. Wainwright is no doubt struggling this season. He's 3-7 with that 8.78 ERA.

1) It makes sense to send him to the bullpen. He's struggling and doesn't deserve to be a starting pitcher anymore and the team should evaluate possible solutions for the future.

2) They are doing him a favor. He won't be able to hit the 200-win mark as a starter, so they are giving him a chance to get the mark in an easier fashion.

3) They are doing him wrong and he deserves the chance to go out like he came in.

How do you view the situation?

Wainwright is 198-124 in his career. He's a three-time All-Star, a two-time Gold Glover and a World Series champion (2006).

The Cardinals take on the Athletics on Tuesday night at 7:45 p.m. ET.

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