Extension Talks Progress For Wainwright, Cardinals

The Cardinals continue talking to the representative for Adam Wainwright about a long-term extension. Agent Steve Hammond recently met with Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. and general manager John Mozeliak to discuss a multiyear deal, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. Hammond said he hopes the sides built momentum during a lengthy meeting.

"We want to get something done before Spring Training ends, and that’s our goal," Hammond told Goold. "They have communicated clearly that they want to keep Adam here, and we’ve communicated that he wants to be here. We have to keep working on that."

The sides intend to stay in touch during the coming days. They took a break from extension talks earlier in the offseason, when Wainwright wanted more years than the Cardinals were offering. The Cardinals seem willing to pay Wainwright like a top-of-the-rotation starter, Goold writes.

Wainwright returned from Tommy John surgery to post a 3.94 ERA with 8.3 K/9 and 2.4 BB/9 in 198 2/3 regular season innings in 2012. The 31-year-old will hit free agency next offseason if he doesn’t sign a long-term deal with the Cardinals.

Matt Cain (six years, $127.5MM) and Zack Greinke (six years, $147MM) and are among the right-handed starters whose contracts could provide a framework for Wainwright’s next deal. Earlier this month, Wainwright spoke to MLBTR contributor B.J. Rains about his relationship with Hammond.