Cardinals Legend Officially Retires After Successful 18-Year Career

The St. Louis Cardinals have lost some serious star power over the last couple of seasons.

One year after St. Louis lost both catcher Yadier Molina and designated hitter Albert Pujols, one of the best pitchers in franchise history has hung up the cleats.

Cardinals right-hander Adam Wainwright officially retired on Wednesday according to the Major League Baseball transaction log. His 40-man roster spot was taken by former Oakland Athletics infielder Buddy Kennedy, who will provide depth for the time being. 

Wainwright's final season did not go as planned. He went 5-11 with a 7.40 ERA, 55-to-41 strikeout-to-walk ratio, .345 batting average against and 1.90 WHIP in 101 innings across 21 starts. The team also unexpectedly finished in last place for the first time since 1990.

The one silver lining was his final start on Sept. 18, when the 42-year-old turned back the clock to toss seven shutout innings with four hits allowed, two walks and three strikeouts against the Milwaukee Brewers. Most importantly, that effort secured his 200th win.

Wainwright finished his career with a 200-128 record, a 3.53 ERA, 2,202 strikeouts, a .254 batting average against and a 1.24 WHIP in 2,668 1/3 innings across 478 games.

The soon-to-be Cardinals Hall of Famer also took pride in his .192 batting average (143-for-744) with 51 extra-base hits including 10 home runs and a .510 OPS across his 18-year career. 

Wainwright was a three-time All-Star, two-time Gold Glove winner, Silver Slugger and of course, a World Series Champion for his efforts as a reliever in 2006.