Adam Wainwright, Cardinals Agree on Deal for His Return in 2022

Wainwright, 40, is 17–7 this season with a 3.05 ERA. He's having his best year since 2014 and will start the NL wild-card game for the Cardinals.

Cardinals righthander Adam Wainwright has more than one reason to celebrate this week.

Not only will Wainwright, 40, start in the National League wild-card game Wednesday, but he and St. Louis have agreed to a deal for his return in 2022. St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Derrick S. Goold was the first to report the move. 

"I don't want to be anywhere else," Wainwright said in the Friday press conference. "Who am I kidding?"

Wainwright (17–7, 3.05 ERA) is having his best season since 2014, and his renaissance is one of the main reasons for his team's success. His consistency and workload (206 1/3 innings) held St. Louis together during its struggles this summer while some of its other pitchers were out with injuries. The Cardinals beat the Brewers 6–2 Tuesday night to clinch the second wild-card berth. It was the 17th straight win for St. Louis, and Wainwright was the game's winning pitcher.

"He's been a very effective pitcher throughout his career, one of the greatest Cardinals ever, and has really led the staff for a number of years," chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. said, per the Post-Dispatch. "He's just been a wonderful player, and a really wonderful person and leader.

"We look at him as a lifetime Cardinal."

Wainwright, who has spent his entire 16-year MLB career with the Cardinals, isn't a stranger to the postseason. In 28 playoff appearances, he has a 2.89 ERA.