Wainwright, Cardinals agree on five-year extension

After about two months of negotiating a contract extension with right-hander Adam Wainwright, the Cardinals have reached an agreement that will keep Wainwright in St. Louis through 2018.

MLB.com has confirmed that the two sides have agreed on a five-year extension that will begin after this season. Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com and MLB Network reported that the deal is worth $97.5 million. Wainwright is already under contract to earn $12 million in 2013. The Cardinals have not confirmed the report, but did announce that they have scheduled a news conference for 9 a.m. CT on Thursday.

A contract of that value easily eclipses the five-year, $63.5 million deal Chris Carpenter signed with the Cardinals in Dec. 2006. Until now, that contract stood as the largest the Cardinals have ever given to a pitcher.

Getting Wainwright, 31, signed before he could become a free agent next offseason was a priority for the Cardinals, who, in the past 13 months, have also signed catcher Yadier Molina and first baseman Allen Craig to long-term extensions. Wainwright had expressed a desire to stay, but also wanted to be paid what he viewed as fair market value for being among the game's elite.

"I feel like I'm the guy that wants the ball in big situations," Wainwright said. "Probably most of our pitchers would tell you the same thing, but I expect the ball in big games."

Wainwright said recently that he wanted resolution with his contract status before he starts for the Cardinals on Monday, which is Opening Day.

Wainwright went 14-13 with a 3.94 ERA in 2012, his first season back from Tommy John surgery. Since 2007, he has the sixth-lowest ERA among Major League pitchers; his 3.15 career ERA is second best among all active pitchers with a minimum of 1,000 innings.

"Before his elbow [injury], he was one of the top five pitchers in the game, and I have no doubt that he's going to get back to that," veteran starter Jake Westbrook said. "You could see glimpses of that last year. His record didn't show it, but the way he pitched, I feel like he's going to get back to that."

Wainwright has long been considered a co-ace on the Cardinals' staff, but with Carpenter gone, he now alone assumes that role. It's a title, manager Mike Matheny said, that Wainwright has earned through "former accomplishments, current stuff, and then leadership qualities and capabilities."

"Those are all things he brings to the table and things he does exceptionally well," Matheny added. "We're excited about a lot of our young pitchers to be able to work with an Adam Wainwright-caliber pitcher, what he's teaching them about stuff and approach, as well as you conduct yourself on the mound and off away from the field. Those are all types of things that are extremely valuable to this organization."

Smart move for the Cardinals.