JUPITER, Fla. • Longtime Cardinals ace Adam Wainwright, who absorbed criticism from Commissioner Rob Manfred and Boston Red Sox owner John Henry this week after offering up his frustration at the lack of movement in free agency and saying he feared a midseason strike, was happy to get back to baseball Tuesday.
“Anything that takes you away from the reason that you’re here, to get better and help the team win, is just distraction,” said Wainwright. “That’s not my intention. Ever.”
Wainwright threw to hitters — Matt Carpenter and Paul Goldschmidt — for the first time this spring, and pitching coach Mike Maddux said, “Waino liked it.