ST. LOUIS (KMOX) - The first St. Louis Cardinals Spring Training game is just over two weeks away and players will soon be reporting to Jupiter, Fla. And just like most fans, newly re-signed starting pitcher Adam Wainwright is getting excited about seeing the year-to-year progress of his teammates.
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He says there are a few pitchers in particular he's hoping to see a lot from. You can listen to the full conversation he had with our Kevin Wheeler and Mike Claiborne, here:
Alex Reyes:
This was the guy Wainwright said is his "number one" he's looking forward to seeing.
"Just a force out of the bullpen at the end of the year. He could pitch in whatever capacity, whatever role he was asked to. So the question becomes, obviously, can he stay healthy as a starter? He's had some rotten luck with injuries, but he's one of the most talented guys I've been around."
The former No. 1 pitching prospect in baseball was a huge piece of St. Louis' bullpen in August and September last year. The Cardinals were 10-5 in games that he appeared in.
He didn't allow a run in his first four appearances of 2020. Then, he finished the last month of the season with a 2.38 ERA over 11.1 innings of work.
Daniel Ponce de Leon:
Wainwright says the big question with him is, "can he continue to progress?"
"There's times when we've seen Ponce and he's absolutely un-hittable. There's times when you're wondering, alright, maybe he's a lockdown late-inning guy."
The 29-year-old has been competing for a regular spot in the starting rotation for the last two or three seasons. But he didn't get his first win as a starting pitching until last September.
Last year he had his best season in terms of swing-and-miss stuff, with 12.4 strikeouts-per-9 inning, but also gave up a career high 2.2 home runs-per-9 innings.
Matthew Liberatore:
This is the young arm that Wainwright says he's "really interested" in seeing pitch this spring.
"He's not on everybody's radar. He's the guy that we traded Randy Arozarena for and everybody's going, 'Who did you trade him for!? This guy is the greatest hitter in the history of the postseason! Blah, blah, blah...' But (Liberatore) is pretty talented. I'm really excited to see what he's going to do for us."
He just turned 21 in November and would need to have an impressive spring to make the Major League roster, but it's never too soon to wonder what this guy could become. He's No. 50 on Keith Law's top 100 prospects of 2021 and is projected to be a well-rounded No. 2 starter in the bigs one day.
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