JUPITER, Fla. -- By his own judgment, Adam Wainwright hit his location about half the time Thursday, during his spring debut against the Twins. Half the time, he missed. Not terrible for a first outing, but Wainwright called it "not nearly good enough."
Simply put, the most celebrated Cardinals pitcher of the past decade has a smaller margin for error than ever. And Wainwright knows it. The reminders are there: On his driver's license, in his manager's words, from the radar gun. None of them has curbed Wainwright's belief that he can reach his past level of success.