Adam Wainwright Expected to Be Ready for Spring Training

The St. Louis Cardinals have had a tumultuous offseason after winning its 11th World Series in franchise history, but they did get some good news on Thursday. According to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Adam Wainwright is expected back at full strength for spring training. 

Wainwright was shut down last February with elbow pain that was later revealed to be a torn ligament that would require Tommy John surgery. His recovery is right on schedule, but don't expect the Cardinals to just throw him out there with no restrictions.

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Wainwright is not babying his arm through the workout, pushing it instead so he can be ahead of schedule when his teammates arrive for spring training. Within the next few weeks, Wainwright will take the mound for the first time at about the same time he usually starts throwing. The righty will relocate from his native St. Simons Island, Ga., to the Cardinals' complex in Jupiter, Fla., early in January, more than a month before spring training officially starts.

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The problem with elbow reconstructive surgery is that it takes nearly two full years after it is performed before pitchers regain the command and control that they had before. It's not a guarantee that it does come back, but Wainwright will be ready to prove that he can handle a normal workload. 

With Chris Carpenter, Jaime Garcia and Kyle Lohse, the Cardinals already had one of the strongest rotations in the National League. Adding Wainwright into the mix will only make them better, but don't expect him to be the Cy Young contender he was in 2009 and 2010. 

It is going to take time before Wainwright gets back to being that pitcher. I would expect him to be average in 2012, worth about 2.5 wins above replacement. 

The real test will be to see how he is progressing later in the season. It is not like he can just step back in after a year off and throw 225 innings again. His workload will probably be limited to around 175-180 if I had to guess, and if the Cardinals make the playoffs, they will decide what to do then. 

Regardless, getting Wainwright back in time for spring training has to be a huge relief for Cardinals fans and the front office after losing Albert Pujols to free agency. To me, they were already the favorites in the NL Central heading into 2012, and getting their ace back only makes them stronger. 

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