Which Cardinals players have the most to prove entering Spring Training?

We're almost there my friends. The Cardinals had a solid offseason and enter the 2023 season as firm favorites to repeat as NL Central champions. Most of the team is coming off strong individual performances from last summer. Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado were MVP finalists with Goldschmidt taking home the award. On the mound, Jordan Montgomery shined after being acquired from the Yankees at the deadline.

However not every member of the Cardinals organization is coming off a career year. There are some players who are entering 2023 with a chip on their shoulder and a massive point to prove. In this article, we'll take a look at some of the players who are on the hot seat entering the 2023 season. The list itself is in no particular order.

Adam Wainwright

The first name on my list may be a surprise to some, why would Adam Wainwright find himself under any pressure this season?? While Wainwright may not be under a lot of pressure in the eyes of the fanbase as a whole, this I feel is more personal pressure that he is putting on himself. We all know that Wainwright had a rough ending a season ago. For most of 2022, Adam was the most consistent piece of the Cardinals rotation. He was going deep into games and always gave the Cardinals a chance to win.

But once the calendar hit September, Wainwright's year went into freefall, after a wonderful August where he had an ERA of 2.50, He went 2-3 with an ERA of 7.22 in the month of September. Wainwright went from being at the top of the Cardinals rotation to not appearing in the Cardinals' Wild Card series loss to Philadelphia. As it is also Wainwright's final season, expect him to enter 2023 with a point to prove as he looks to bounce back.