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Adam Wainwright clearly never took a lesson in integrity from the Derek Jeter school of baseball.

In interviews following his All-Star game start, Wainwright told reporters that he put his first-inning, 1-0 pitch to Jeter on a tee:

Jeter laced a double to right field, adding yet another memorable moment to his illustrious 20-year MLB career. But because of Wainwright, that moment is tainted.

Sure, Jeter deserved a hit or two in his 14th and final All-Star game appearance. But he deserved only what he could achieve on his own.

You don’t tally 3,408 career hits because opponents grant them to you.

And on the other side, if you can muster the disrespect for the game to groove a pitch, at least keep your mouth shut.

Zip it. Lock it. Throw away the key.

The only decision worse than grooving the pitch was saying he did it.

By admitting to intentionally throwing a meatball in Jeter’s wheelhouse, Wainwright publiclyundermined the swing. He publicly undermined the double. Worst of all, he publicly undermined the moment because he authored the moment.

The Twitterverse exploded as reporters tweeted out Wainwright’s quotes. Some, like NJ.com’s Brendan Kuty, did not condemn Wainwright:

Although, Kuty would end up changing his mind about the situation. 

But there’s no justifiable stance in favor of Wainwright—Jeter’s deserving of reciprocation of integrity aside.

The All-Star game is fun—for the players and the fans. The result also determines home-field advantage for the World Series. As inane as that is, it’s also the truth.

Wainwright not only did Jeter a disservice; he also endangered his St. Louis Cardinals‘ chances of obtaining home-field advantage in the Fall Classic.

Jeter’s double catalyzed a three-run first inning.

St. Louis carried a 52-44 record into the All-Star break. That pits them one game behind the Milwaukee Brewers for first place in the NL Central. They’re also 0.5 games out of the wild card.

The Cardinals have a legitimate shot at reaching the World Series, and if they get there, Wainwright could have diminished their chances of winning.

But the World Series is still three months away. Tonight was about Derek Jeter.

And Adam Wainwright undermined the moment because he conspired to create it.

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Baseball’s best franchise is about to be tested.

When Michael Wacha and Jaime Garcia hit the disabled list with shoulder injuries, the strength of the defending National League champions was challenged. If the team is going to overcome the potentially long-term losses, it will take gargantuan efforts from the remaining 60 percent of the staff and the next men up in the organization.

In the aftermath of Sunday’s victory over the Philadelphia Phillies, Cardinals general manager John Mozeliak alerted the media about Wacha and Garcia, per Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com.

While the idea of the oft-injured Garcia heading back to the sidelines surprised few, the news surrounding Wacha was a bombshell and a major hit to St. Louis’ chances at a postseason berth.

As Mozeliak explained, there’s not a concrete timetable for the return of either starter, leading to worry inside the organization:

It’s concerning. We really don’t know what’s coming. You’re putting two pitchers on the DL today. I’m not in a position where I’ll know when they’re return or how they’ll return or the effectiveness of how they’ll return. It does leave us in a little bit of a gray area. Now, two weeks from now, a month from now, we may feel pretty good about where we are. But as I sit here today, I don’t know that answer.

For St. Louis, the answer lies in two separate but intertwined areas: the remaining rotation members and fill-in starters. 

Let’s start with the trio of Adam Wainwright, Lance Lynn and Shelby Miller. As you can tell from the following chart, St. Louis’ starting rotation is a major reason the team entered play on June 23 having only allowed 256 runs on the season, good for best in the NL and second in all of baseball to the Oakland Athletics.

After a dominant effort—8 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 7 SO, 0 BB—by Lynn against the Colorado Rockies, the numbers are even more impressive for the season.

With 77 games in the books, the Cardinals are on pace to allow just 538 runs for the entire year. To put that into perspective, the last time St. Louis pitching limited opposing offenses to that few runs in a full season was 1968, also known as the year of the pitcher.

While Wainwright and Lynn look poised to carry a rotation over the next few months, worry should accompany Miller’s upcoming starts. On the surface, a 3.56 ERA looks respectable for a 23-year-old starter, but, digging deeper, the numbers aren’t pretty.

With a FIP (fielding independent pitching) well over 4.00 and suspect command, Miller is flirting with disaster on a routine basis. In time, the former first-round pick may develop into an ace or a front-of-the-rotation pitcher. Right now, ERA is the only thing suggesting success thus far in 2014. 

Losing two starters and featuring a young, unproven third starter with spotty numbers isn’t enough to ruin postseason hopes for the Cardinals. Thanks to a deep, fertile prospect base and system-wide depth, the Cardinals have options at the back end of the rotation. 

For the time being, Carlos Martinez will continue to work out of the rotation. In his last start against Philadelphia, the 22-year-old righty earned the victory after tossing up the following line: 5 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 5 SO, 1 BB.

With a 99 mph fastball and the pedigree of a pitcher groomed to be a starter, Martinez could take off and make folks forget about Wacha, at least for a while. But despite his great stuff and his overwhelming fastball, left-handed batters own an .866 OPS against Martinez this season. If that isn’t corrected, success won’t follow.

In the other spot, Marco Gonzales, last June’s first-round pick, will be called up for a start, per broadcaster Dan McLaughlin. If Gonzales isn’t ready for prime time, Joe Kelly could be back shortly to reprise his role as an underrated starter.

“Joe Kelly, who we believe to relatively close in what we know, still has to check those boxes,” Mozeliak said in regard to rehab for starting pitchers.

Since bursting on the scene as a 21-year-old last summer, Wacha has been one of the best pitchers in the world and virtually irreplaceable. Among starters with at least 155.0 IP since the start of the 2013 season, Wacha‘s 2.79 ERA ranks 12th, per Baseball-Reference (subscription required). 

Among the starters below Wacha on that list: Chris Sale, Cliff Lee, Stephen Strasburg and Max Scherzer. 

Although Garcia doesn’t possess the same high-end ability, St. Louis lost rotation balance when the southpaw went down. From Wainwright to Lynn to Miller to Martinez to Kelly, the Cardinals rotation could feature five right-handed starters soon. If Gonzales is good enough to hold a spot, the rookie would replace Garcia as manager Mike Matheny’s lone lefty.

Over the next few months, the Cardinals rotation is poised to take a hit. Even if Wainwright and Lynn pitch at a high level, Miller’s uneven season is bound to disappoint, and the combination of Martinez, Kelly and Gonzales isn’t good enough to be trusted for excellence yet.

That being said, not many teams have capable fill-in arms that range from former top-30 prospect (Martinez), first-round pick (Gonzales) and seasoned big-game pitcher (Kelly). 

Before long, St. Louis likely won’t be among the top two or three or five best teams in runs allowed, but there’s enough talent and depth in this system to keep the Cardinals afloat for the next few months. 

Agree? Disagree? 

Statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com, FanGraphs and ESPN unless otherwise noted.

Comment, follow me on Twitter or “like” my Facebook page to talk about all things baseball.

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Matt Holliday has always been in an odd place as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals.

While plenty of fans recognize him for what he has done, there is a certain faction that seems to always be looking for a reason to complain about Holliday.

This is the same faction that always sees him as the obvious “trade chip.” He’s the fan base’s perennial fall guy even when he’s putting up solid numbers—and that’s something he’s done regularly during his time as a Cardinal.

His 1,000^th RBI serves only to underscore his role as one of the more consistent outfielders in the game today.

Just as food for thought, here are a few points to keep in the front of your mind when thinking of Matt Holliday.

• An overall career .309 hitter, Holliday is the team leader in batting average among active Cardinals. He has hit .302 in his six seasons with the Cardinals—second only to Albert Pujols. One notch below him is Jon Jay, but that’s a column for another day.

•He’s never hit less than 22 home runs in a full season with the Cardinals. He is the only player currently on the roster who can make that statement.

•Holliday is also the team’s active leader in OBP (.388), slugging percentage (.507) and home runs (117). The fact that he’s in his sixth season with the Cardinals has played a role, however, his ability to put up consistent numbers year after year is the true difference maker.

• While he has suffered through some painful slumps over the years, his hot streaks are capable of carrying a team for several weeks. Overall, he’s had a slow start to 2014, but if we can learn anything from history it’s that Holliday could crank things up at any time.

• It’s long been understood that Holliday’s defense isn’t his strongest tool. No one’s arguing against that. Matt Holliday is a hitter. However, to the naked eye Holliday looks to be making serious strides in left field this year. He seems to be legging out balls that in the past I would argue he wouldn’t have reached.

In 2014, 11 years into his career, Holliday continues to grow as a player. He’s not content with just “mailing it in.”

In St. Louis, playing for an organization with a Triple-A outfield worthy of most major league teams, job security comes only through performance.

While his 2009 contract paying him $17 million per year through 2016 (with a 2017 option) seemed like a huge chunk of change at the time, as time passes it’s beginning to look like a bargain.

With teams beginning to dump more dollars and years into contracts for similar players, Holliday’s ability to stay on the field and put up long-term consistent numbers make him one of the Cardinals better signings in recent history.

When you look at, for instance, David Wright, who signed a contract of similar value, the Holliday contract looks even better. Despite a few minor injuries, Holliday has never missed significant playing time in his career.

Things like appendicitis and the moth incident are just freak injuries. Life happens.

In the meantime, let the naysayers complain about Holliday all they want. His numbers can speak for themselves.

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For St. Louis Cardinals fans, it’s been a long wait to see top prospect Oscar Taveras in action. The 21-year-old Dominican Republic outfielder was ranked as the No. 2 prospect for 2014 on MLB.com, but he wasn’t called into action until Saturday’s game against the San Francisco Giants. 

As it turns out, he appears to be well worth the wait. 

In just his second major league at-bat, he flashed the power that makes him such an exciting prospect. He took the 1-0 pitch deep to right-center to notch his first career home run and give the Cardinals a 1-0 lead over the Giants. 

Given Taveras‘ youth at just a shade under 22 years old, the home run was a historic one in franchise history, per ESPN Stats & Info:

Taveras finished the day 1-for-3 at the plate as the Cardinals moved to 30-26 on the season in a 2-0 win over the Giants. However, the solo shot was all the slugger needed to launch his candidacy for honors as the National League Rookie of the Year. 

With the season just over a third of the way in, Taveras has some ground to make up. Contenders such as Michael Olt and Chris Owings have played as many as 45 and 51 games, respectively. But make no mistake about it: Taveras will quickly enter himself into the race. 

The hype surrounding Taveras is backed up by his impressive minor league numbers.

Prior to his call-up to replace an injured Matt Adams on the Cardinals roster, Taveras was hitting .325 with seven homers and 40 RBI in 49 games at the Triple-A level this season. 

Of course, the obvious retort to Taveras becoming a front-runner for the NL Rookie of the Year honors this year would be the case of Yasiel Puig last season. After all, the hyped Los Angeles Dodgers slugger was passed over for the award last season in favor of Miami Marlins pitcher Jose Fernandez. 

Would a similar power barrage for the Cardinals rookie equate to a similar failure to bring home the hardware?

Possibly, but the situation is quite different. 

Whereas Puig came into a Rookie of the Year race loaded with contenders, Taveras is entering a race that doesn’t feature many well-qualified candidates this early in the race. Here’s a look at what a few of the top candidates thus far have done at the plate:

As one can see, there are some solid numbers being put up in the National League, but the competition isn’t nearly as stiff as in the American League. Players like Jose Abreu and Masahiro Tanaka are putting up numbers that Taveras won’t be able to make up as the season goes along. 

The wait might have been excruciating for Cardinals fans. It’s never fun waiting on a tantalizing talent like Taveras to make his debut. But he’s entering the season with plenty of time to make his impact on the season. 

With his first game already providing some fireworks at the plate, that impact is going to be felt not only by the opposing pitchers, but by his fellow Rookie of the Year contenders. 

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Down on the farm, a vast majority of the St. Louis Cardinals‘ top 10 prospects are having noteworthy seasons.

Earning a spot on the big league roster is the ultimate goal for these young players, and the future certainly looks bright with the vast assortment of raw talent the Cardinals boast in their minor league system.

Outfielders Oscar Taveras and Stephen Piscotty are among the Cardinals prospects that are flourishing this season at Triple-A Memphis.

A handful of other prospects are also producing at the lower levels of the minor leagues.

Here’s how the Cardinals’ top 10 prospects fared during Week 9.

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Few if any would’ve envisioned the St. Louis Cardinals to be hovering around .500 a month-and-a-half into the regular season. The Cardinals are the reigning National League champions, the team many picked to run away with the Central Division.

Yes, the season is young, but the Cardinals’ unexpected slump to begin 2014 is reason enough to believe general manager John Mozeliak could make a few moves at the trade deadline.

Sitting at 21-20, and five games behind the division-leading Milwaukee Brewers, the Cardinals’ mediocre game is cause for concern, especially for Mozeliak, whose patience is growing thin.

“Having a belief in it is far different than actually getting it done,” Mozeliak told Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “It’s still early in the season where we can’t hit the panic button, but you’ve got to see the trend line changing.”

Even though Mozeliak insists he hasn’t hit the panic button just yet, it isn’t too far-fetched to believe he is looking at other alternatives outside of the organization to spark his club.

Here are three potential deals Mozeliak should propose at the trade deadline.

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After reaching the World Series last season, the St. Louis Cardinals have decided to extend the contract of general manager John Mozeliak.

According to Major League Baseball on Twitter, the two-year extension means that Mozeliak is now contracted through the 2018 season:

The Cardinals organization is clearly thrilled with the job that Mozeliak has done as he was also extended last year, per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

Mozeliak has been the Cards’ GM since 2007, and although the team has experienced plenty of turnover during that time, St. Louis has consistently been one of the league’s best teams during his tenure.

The Cardinals have made four playoff appearances under Mozeliak, including two trips to the World Series. They fell to the Boston Red Sox last year, but Mozeliak oversaw St. Louis’ 11th World Series title in franchise history back in 2011.

Mozeliak was the one who made the difficult decision to let future Hall of Fame first baseman Albert Pujols leave via free agency a couple years ago, but the Cards haven’t missed a beat. While the huge contract that the Los Angeles Angels handed the injury-prone Pujols looks insane now, St. Louis has been able to replace him with value players.

The Cardinals are once again expected to contend for a National League pennant and perhaps even a World Series championship this season. They are off to a modest 5-5 start, but recent history suggests that they will ultimately rise to the top of the NL Central Division.

Based on everything that Mozeliak has accomplished in St. Louis, this extension seems like a great idea from the Cardinals’ perspective.

There is more parity in baseball now than there has been in a very long time, yet the Cards continue to put themselves in position to be successful.

With Mozeliak at the helm through at least 2018, that isn’t likely to change any time soon.

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While perusing this list of the top MLB salaries in 2014, you have to travel down 22 spots before seeing the first St. Louis Cardinals player. Adam Wainwright checks in there with his $19.5 million payday this season.

Actually, Wainwright would be 24^th since this list doesn’t reflect recent deals signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw and the Los Angeles Angels’ Mike Trout.

But that’s not really the point. Many Cards players get paid handsomely for their services. And while it’s true they don’t have the financial resources of the New York Yankees, Dodgers or Angels, they’re not the Little Sisters of the Poor, either.

The Cardinals are rarely in the top 10 in payroll, and they’ve never been a top-five spender. In 2005, they reached their payroll pinnacle at sixth. 

What’s impressive—and telling—about St. Louis’ run of eight National League Championship Series appearances since 2000 is the team hasn’t had to throw around mega bucks to manufacture on-field success.

Most of that has to do with circumstances created by the organization. The front office deserves tons of credit for scouting and player development. Ownership also has made shrewd moves to lock up budding stars into team-friendly deals. The Cardinals have won while maintaining a balance of cheap, younger players to offset pricier veterans.

And then there’s the impact of the city itself. Few places in the sports landscape do a better job at selling players on a culture than St. Louis. It’s impossible to account for the millions saved when a player falls in love with the winning tradition and a deep, loyal fan base.

In the wake of Kershaw’s huge deal with the Dodgers, Wainwright’s deal looked like a steal for the Cardinals. Still, Wainwright insisted he’s content with the five-year, $97 million extension he signed in March of last year. Wainwright told Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

Once I signed that deal, that was the deal I wanted to sign. I didn’t have to sign it. We worked to get to a number where I felt made it fair for both sides. This is where I wanted to be. Do I think I could have made more money on the free agent market? Absolutely.

But you can’t buy happiness. I’m not going to be happier anywhere else than where I am right now.

The club had its chance to dip its toes into the $20-million-a-year player pool a few seasons ago. Cards fans remember Albert Pujols’ free-agent soap opera in the 2011 offseason.

The Redbirds were world champs, and their best player, a franchise icon, was set to test the open market. Many fans were willing to pay any amount of ownership’s money to keep El Hombre. Even to the point of sacrificing the team’s ability to assemble a winning club around Pujols, keeping the three-time National League MVP had to happen. Nothing else would be tolerated or accepted.

It doesn’t matter which side you believe on how negotiations broke down. Even with the Cardinals’ reported eight-year, $200 million deal, No. 5 was going to make north of $25 million per season to wear the Birds on the Bat.

Ultimately, of course, Pujols signed with the Angels. And who can blame him? His 10-year, $240 million mammoth deal will pay him a ridiculous $30 million in 2021 when he’s 41. The Cardinals wanted him to stay, but they weren’t insane.

The Cardinals have done fine without the player they couldn’t afford to lose. In two subsequent seasons, they’ve reached the NLCS and World Series. Many of the Cardinals faithful who clamored to go all-in to keep him are openly relieved they didn’t. They wince at the thought of the likely repercussions that deal would’ve had on the franchise.

Either Wainwright or Yadier Molina likely wouldn’t have re-signed—and maybe neither. The money simply wouldn’t have been there. Such a financial commitment to Pujols would impact deals for Allen Craig and Matt Carpenter. Forget about Carlos Beltran’s two years in the Lou. Same goes for Jhonny Peralta’s four-year deal last offseason.

Even if Pujols stayed and produced the same impressive numbers as the first 11 seasons in St. Louis, the deal still would look sketchy at best.

Pujols’ production with the Angels continues to drop while his time in the trainer’s room increases. He missed the majority of last season due to injury. The effects of Father Time give little hope of him returning to superstar levels attained with the Cardinals.

St. Louis entered last offseason desperately searching for a shortstop. Rumors linked the team to Colorado’s Troy Tulowitzki. The Cardinals had the financial flexibility to absorb his hefty price tag, and they had the prospects to pull it off. But such a deal, whether rooted in reality or not, didn’t make sense.

The Cardinals aren’t immune to bad decisions. But the club’s few misses aren’t the type of payroll-crippling mistakes that would send the franchise into a recession. Clubs with a $110 million payroll can’t afford to invest a quarter of that on one player, no matter who he is.

Look at what’s happened to the Minnesota Twins after the eight-year, $184 million deal given to Joe Mauer following his MVP season in 2009. He hit 28 home runs that year. The next four seasons combined, he’s hit 33 homers. Meanwhile, his $23 million annual salary accounts for at least a quarter of the team’s payroll.

Not coincidentally, the Twins have gone 195-291 in the last three seasons.

Few teams get the kind of return on their investment as the Cardinals.

Craig batted .316 while hitting 13 homers and driving in 97 runs last season. And that’s despite missing nearly all of September with an ankle injury. He got paid $1.75 million.

The top three earners among National League first basemen in 2013 were Adrian Gonzalez ($21.8M), Ryan Howard ($20M) and Joey Votto ($18.9M).

Gonzalez had a great season for the Dodgers with a .293-22-100 line. Votto went .305-24-73. Not too shabby. But Howard was limited to 11 homers and 286 at-bats due to injury.

Starters Shelby Miller, Joe Kelly and Lance Lynn went a combined 40-24 with a 3.33 ERA last season. Together they made $1.5 million.

Carpenter, who finished fourth in the NL MVP race, had 199 hits, scored 126 runs and made $504,000.

The team also got great returns on its larger investments.

Matt Holliday had the third-highest salary among NL left fielders ($17M) last season. Among qualifiers at that position, he was fourth in homers (22) and first in RBI (94), average (.300) and OPS (.879).

Signed to a five-year, $75 million extension during spring training last season, Molina lived up to his new $14.2 million salary by finishing second in NL MVP voting.

Clearly, Wainwright’s extension made him complacent. Now earning $12 million, he finished second in the Cy Young voting after a 19-win campaign.

The Cardinals are happy to let others hand out enormous deals that look bad before the ink’s dry on the contract. Four World Series appearances and two titles in 10 seasons show they’re investing the right way.

All salary information courtesy of Spotrac.com unless otherwise noted.

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St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Michael Wacha never wanted to be called “Wacha Flocka Flame.”

“I guess it’s just something I have to get used to,” he said on Friday before the Cardinals played the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The nickname is a reference to the similarly named rapper Waka Flocka Flame. Wacha had never heard of the hip-hop artist before a friend his freshman year at Texas A&M introduced Wacha to his music.

And it was not love at first listen.

Wacha had no interest in adopting a nickname associated with the rapper then, let alone filling his iPod with Waka Flocka Flame songs. Wacha still doesn’t. But fans, along with outlets including ESPN, Sporting News and Arch City Sports, have embraced its usage.

Wacha’s disinterest in the nickname doesn’t stem from a disinterest in rap. He listed hip hop and country as his favorite genres of music for his get-to-know-you Q&A on the official website of the Memphis Redbirds, the Cardinals’ Triple-A affiliate. His lack of interest is individualized.

While the 22-year-old Wacha has quickly developed into a prominent pitcher, Waka Flocka Flame isn’t the most respected rapper.

Wacha won four of the five games he pitched in the 2013 MLB playoffs, finishing with a 2.64 ERA. Comparatively, in review of Waka’s last album “Triple F Life,” Rolling Stone wrote “classing up Waka is like putting a fig leaf over King Kong’s balls.”

Due to the not-so-gratifying comparison, it isn’t shocking that Wacha doesn’t lay in bed at night dreaming about Waka writing a song about him, though the idea of isn’t far-fetched. Waka is a sports fanatic and coined “hard in the paint,” a phrase used often enough by athletes for ESPN to publish a feature about it.

The pitcher did say he isn’t fazed by the nickname as much as he used to be, but he’s not dying to hear a “Hard on the Mound” remix.

*All quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. 

David Daniels is a breaking news writer at Bleacher Report and news editor at Wade-O Radio.

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St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Matt Adams, by most accounts, had a solid opening series against the Cincinnati Reds. He produced with the bat, proved that a defensive shift will not always work against him and played adequate defense. Then he tried to catch a foul ball as it flew into the stands down the right field line.

That play seems to be all anyone can talk about now.

A harmless foul ball caught by a fan does not generally produce much ire. But as Adams gathered himself to return to his position, he made a mistake that has been made by countless other young athletes: he pushed the fan.

It is important to clarify that statement, with or without the video proof. Adams did not push the fan in a way that would injure him. He did not push the fan in a way that could be misconstrued as an intention to hit the fan. He put his glove on the fan’s chest and pushed him. The fan responded by showing Adams that the ball was in his possession. 

It turned out to be harmless. But harmless does not always mean that it should be forgiven. Regardless of the situation, the description remains the same. Adams, a professional athlete, put his hands on a fan. That should never happen.

Adams claimed he was simply trying to avoid falling into the stands, attempting to push himself back into a standing position to keep from toppling over. He shared those thoughts with Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

I was trying to stop, … I hit the tarp and I tried from going into the stands. People came up to me and said I shoved him. I didn’t know I had.

I’m not that type of guy to go after anybody. I was just trying to keep from going into the stands.

A fine excuse that is refuted pretty easily when you watch the video. It was not innocent or accidental. Adams was frustrated with the fan for whatever reason and his recourse was to push him.

The question now turns to his taking responsibility for actions. The league office has likely reviewed the incident. Punishment is likely coming. The severity of the punishment could tell a lot about the situation and how serious the league takes it.  

If Adams is suspended, it will be because the league wants to make the message clear to the players: No matter the situation, if you put your hands on a fan, the punishment will be severe. A fine will send a clear statement that the league is willing to take into consideration the severity of the moment. Adams’ shove was minimal. It does not likely require a strong response from the league.

The league is not likely to ignore it, however. Adams made a mistake and will need to pay the price.

Bill Ivie is the founder of i70baseball.com. Follow him on Twitter to discuss all things baseball throughout the season.

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