Former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher intended on making surprise Bananaball appearance

The Savannah Bananas are in the midst of their annual summer tour throughout the United States. The Bananas were originally intended to visit St. Louis on April 4th and 5th. Due to inclement weather, the games were postponed for a few months. Now, the Savannah Bananas will come to St. Louis on July 18th and 19th.

Thanks to reporting by Bob Nightengale of USA Today, we now know that a surprise cameo could have been in store for fans of the St. Louis Cardinals that weekend.

Bob Nightengale reports that former St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright had been training to pitch in a Savannah Bananas game.

In a recent column, Bob Nightengale snuck a tidbit in at the end that is equally exciting and disappointing for fans of the St. Louis Cardinals.

"The Savannah Bananas may look like all fun and games, but apparently it can be a bit dangerous," writes Nightengale. "Former All-Star first baseman Sean Casey tore his hamstring running the bases in a Bananas game, and former 20-game winner Adam Wainwright injured his arm training to pitch in one of the games."

This isn't the first arm injury the three-time All-Star has experienced. He had Tommy John Surgery in 2011, elbow surgery in 2014, elbow inflammation in 2018, and a shoulder strain in 2023, among other nagging injuries throughout his 18-year career. These setbacks weren't enough to slow him down as a professional. However, now that he's retired and 43 years old, Wainwright isn't going to fight through this injury for a brief cameo at a recreational game.

Wainwright wouldn't be the first former player to appear at a Bananaball game at his former stomping grounds. Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, and Alex Gordon made surprise appearances when the Bananas were in Kansas City last month. Todd Frazier and Bronson Arroyo showed up when the Bananas were in Cincinnati. Each of these players opted to play in their former MLB cities rather than their hometowns.

Wainwright's hometown is Brunswick, Georgia, a city about 250 miles away from Atlanta, Georgia, as the crow flies. It would be reasonable to assume that he was planning on making an appearance near his hometown, but the Bananas aren't scheduled to play in Atlanta this year. They have three more games on their schedule in Savannah, Georgia, which is just 80 miles from Waino's hometown. He could have been planning on pitching in Savannah.

However, it's most likely that Wainwright was planning to make his inaugural Bananaball appearance in St. Louis on July 18th and 19th. He spent his entire career with the Cardinals, and it's his second home.

Adam Wainwright's arm injury while preparing for a cameo during a Savannah Bananas game will no longer happen. St. Louis fans who were once hopeful that they would get to see a Cardinal legend and future St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Famer pitch once more are now left disappointed. There may still be an outside chance that Adam Wainwright the Musician makes a guest appearance.