JUPITER, Fla. (KMOX) - The most experienced player in the St. Louis Cardinals clubhouse – in terms of baseball career and life – says he has no idea what he will do next and it sounds like neither do his teammates.
"Complete confusion and unknowing," Wainwright describes the tone in the spring training clubhouse. "No one knows what to do, there's no precedent."
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Cardinals owner Bill DeWitt Jr. says they will keep the facility open for voluntary workouts, for those who live in the area, which would include Wainwright.
MLB has postponed 2020 regular season until at least the middle of May, to follow guidelines from U.S. health officials during the coronavirus pandemic.
Yesterday, the Cardinals' spring training facility was shuttered as it received a deep cleaning days after the coronavirus outbreak shut down its spring training. Players were told by MLB last week, they have three options, to stay in the area of the spring training facility, travel to the club's home city or travel to their off-season home. It seems every day, sometimes every hour, there's a new piece of information that leads to Major League Baseball reconvening and communicating with its clubs.
"The latest is that the April 9 date is not viable at this point," DeWitt said{*} "It remains to be seen when the season would open{*}"
But the room hasn't seemed to have lost its humor. Wainwright says a few teammates told him, "don't come to the field, old people are in danger," referencing the more extreme effects of COVID-19 on older adults.
As far as how he will continue to prepare for baseball games...
"I should have saved the way I felt the other day for this 'second spring training' whenever that is because there was some really good, like, I was feeling like playoff baseball kind of mojo," Wainwright said. "I'm just going to try to stay there mentally and keep my arm going to some extent without, I mean I don't want to waste bullets if this thing goes months and months.
"What we don't know is, are there going to be games added to the end of the season? I mean, this is a business, people's livelihoods are at stake. A couple of these owners spent billions of dollars on their team."
Just chatted with @Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt, Jr. for an interview you'll hear on KMOX.
Wainwright was also asked about how it feels for him personally, being on a one-year contract for what could be the final season of his career.
"Don't feel bad for me," Wainwright says. "It's not optimal for me, but it's not optimal for anybody, like guys who are about to make the team probably and really step their foot into the door. I feel worse for them. I've had a great career. If it ended tomorrow, then I'll sail off into the sunset."
Hear more from Wainwright, who spoke to media in Jupiter on Monday, in the audio at the top of this page.
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