Adam Parrish Wainwright (born August 30, 1981) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball. He is known by the nicknames “Waino” and “Uncle Charlie”.
In the first round of the 2000 amateur draft, the Atlanta Braves picked him 29th overall from Glynn Academy in Brunswick, Georgia.
Wainwright’s success in the minor levels earned him a spot on the Braves’ best pitching prospects list. After the 2003 season, the Braves traded him to the Cardinals in exchange for outfielder J. D. Drew. On September 11, 2005, Wainwright made his Major League Baseball debut against the New York Mets.
Wainwright briefly acquired closer responsibilities after spending his first complete MLB season as a reliever, saving the series-clinching games in both the 2006 National League Championship Series and the World Series. He returned to starting pitching the following season, a job he has held since, with the exception of 2011, when he was sidelined due to Tommy John surgery.
Wainwright established himself as an ace, leading the National League in wins, innings thrown, and games started on many occasions. He’s also finished in the top 10 in ERA, strikeouts, walks plus hits per inning pitched, and complete games.
In 2014, Wainwright became the first pitcher in Major League history to throw seven innings and allow no runs in nine of his first 18 starts. Wainwright has almost 150 wins, three All-Star appearances, two Rawlings Gold Glove Awards, and four times placed in the top three of the Cy Young Award voting.
Wainwright is second in Cardinals team history in strikeouts with 2,040 through the 2021 season, trailing only Bob Gibson (3,117).
Adam Wainwright Siblings: Meet Adam Wainwright Brother, Trey Wainwright
Trey Wainwright is a brother of Adam Wainwright. Trey Wainwright, a quarterback from Niceville, has been chosen Florida Mr. Football for 2020. Wainwright was awarded 7A Player of the Year by the Florida Athletic Coaches Association just a week before receiving this prestigious award. He is the first player from Northwest Florida to win the overall championship.