Adam Wainwright is not ready to close the book on his MLB career just yet.
Speaking with the media on Wednesday, the veteran St. Louis Cardinals righty said that he was still hoping to play beyond this season.
“I want to see how things end [this year],” said Wainwright, according to Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “But it would be really surprising to me if I came out and said I’m retiring.
“I don’t need a farewell tour,” he added. “If that means after the season if I need to do something else to the back side of my elbow that I’ve never heard anybody else have in the history of the game, then I’ll do [it] and we’ll see. But at the moment, I’m not thinking about post-season stuff just yet.”
Wainright, a three-time All-Star and 13-year veteran, has not pitched for the Cardinals since mid-May due to right elbow inflammation, the same elbow where he had Tommy John surgery back in 2011. Wainwright will also be 37 later this month, and his contract with the team expires after the season.
Still, Wainwright is hot on the comeback trail and will be throwing a simulated game in the minors this week before a series of scheduled rehab appearances. All things considered, the determination to continue his career is true to character for a player who has never taken kindly to being written off.
