Adam Wainwright was tagged for five runs in five innings in Game 1 of the World Series in a loss to the Red Sox, but his short outing on Wednesday night could have a silver lining for the Cardinals. Manager Mike Matheny hinted that Wainwright could be back on three days rest to start Game 4.
Adam Wainwright on short rest in Game 4 not ruled out by Cardinals
The Cardinals ace was beaten soundly by the Red Sox in Game 1, but it could potentially mean two more chances for Wainwright at retribution.
Greg M. Cooper-USA TODAY Sports
At the very least, Matheny is keeping his options open. After Game 1 the Cardinals manager was asked if he thought about pulling Wainwright even earlier in the game, in anticipation of potentially making three starts during the series.
“Well, we got him out pretty early, still,” Matheny said. “We’re not ruling out anything moving forward.”
The Red Sox had six hits against Wainwright in his five innings and scored their runs against him in the first two innings. Mike Napoli’s three-run double off Wainwright put Boston up for good in the first inning, and they added two more unearned runs in the second. In all, Wainwright threw 95 pitches on the night.
“Everything I threw tonight was pretty garbage,” Wainwright said after Game 1, per Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports.
Wainwright has never started on three days rest in his career.
He was 19-9 with a 2.94 ERA in 34 regular season starts and led the National League with 241⅔ innings pitched. In four postseason starts in 2013, Wainwright is 2-2 with a 2.25 ERA in 28 innings, including Wednesday night’s game.
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