Cardinals Under Contract: Adam Wainwright

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Contract Terms: Adam Wainwright signed his current contract in March of 2008. It covered his final year of pre-arbitration team control, all three years of arbitration, and club options for his first to years of free agent eligibility. The contract guaranteed the young starting pitcher $15 million over four seasons and gave the team affordable options for two years as well.

2008: $0.5 million
2009: $2.6 million
2010: $4.65 million
2011: $6.5 million
2012: $9 million (Club Option)
2013: $12 million (Club Option)

Wainwright's contract includes a variety of clauses that are somewhat unique. The club options for 2012 and 2013 are actually one option essentially because the club must either exercise of decline them at the same time. If Wainwright finishes in the top 5 in the Cy Young voting in 2010 or 2011, his option years become guaranteed. If Wainwright wins the Cy Young Award in the next two years his 2012 option increases in value to $10 million.

The Rationale Then: Wainwright came to the Cardinals in the trade of JD Drew trade with Atlanta, but sprung into most fans consciousness in 2006. Wainwright pitched 75 innings in relief that year and took over the closers role from veteran Jason Isringhausen. Wainwright then threw almost ten innings of scoreless relief en route to the team's 2006 World Series Championship.

Adam made a successful conversion into the starting role for the 2007 season. He posted an ERA+ of 119 that season while weathering an increased WHIP compared to the rest of his career. The Cardinals saw enough in the then 26 year old pitcher to offer him guaranteed money before he reached arbitration eligibility.

The Outlook Today: The Adam Wainwright deal looks great considering his Cy Young caliber campaign in 2009. Wainwright has also been very durable throughout his career so far. He suffered a fluke hand injury in 2008 but bounced back with a healthy 2009. The Cardinals have paid well below market value for Wainwright's production so far and if he maintains his current performance level the entire contract will be very affordable for the team. The Cardinals relative value on their second ace allows them payroll flexibility in other areas.

Moving Forward: Like most longterm contracts, injury is the biggest risk in this contract. The risk is moderated by the final two years being options. If Wainwright struggles or suffers a major injury that prevents him from pitching well in 2010 or 2011, the team will not be on the hook for the option years. The danger would be if Wainwright pitches well enough to vest the options with a Cy Young top five finish but suffers a significant injury in a subsequent season.

While an injury would be troublesome to the future payroll, the Cardinals have gotten such a bargain on Wainwright's prodution for two years already that the total contract might still be viewed as a positive even with one lost season. Contracts like Wainwright's allow the organization to remain competitive without spending like their larger market opponents like Chicago. A similar contract offer to Colby Rasmus would make sense if he continues to progress in 2010 based on the success of the Wainwright deal so far.
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