Did the St. Louis Cardinals become more likely to re-sign Adam Wainwright?

On Tuesday, the Braves signed Charlie Morton to round out their rotation. Did that help the Cardinals’ chances of re-signing Adam Wainwright?

The St. Louis Cardinals’ top priorities this winter have always been Yadier Molina and Adam Wainwright. Of the two, Molina has always seemed the most likely to return. But on Tuesday morning, the Cardinals perhaps gained clarity on the status of Wainwright.

The Atlanta Braves agreed to a one-year, $15 million deal with free-agent right-hander Charlie Morton, the team announced.

Why does this pertain to the Cardinals and Wainwright? The Braves showed immediate interest in Wainwright and were believed to have identified him as a primary target along with Morton. But with the recent additions of Morton and Drew Smyly, Atlanta is out on starting pitchers, meaning that Wainwright just lost one of his top options.

Since the Braves are notoriously one of baseball’s most aggressive teams in free agency, it plays into Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak’s hands. The team intends to be patient at the start of free agency and not rush into one or two-year deals with Molina and Wainwright.

The free-agent starting pitcher market has been much more lucrative than anticipated, too. Robbie Ray got one-year, $8 million from the Toronto Blue Jays. Smyly got one-year, $11 million from the Braves. Wainwright could give the Cardinals a hometown discount considering that he has pitched 15 years in St. Louis. Such a move would give the Cardinals an additional million or two to spend on other parts of the roster.

Keeping Wainwright and Molina is the ideal scenario for the Cardinals. They are known commodities and would be solid options in 2021. Wainwright showed last season that he can still be an effective pitcher, going 5-3 with a 3.15 ERA and 54/15strikeout-to-walk ratio in 65.2 innings.

While Wainwright may not be the big name most fans seek, the Cardinals would be wise to bring him back for another year. And on Tuesday, that possibility became increasingly realistic.