Waino, Goldy and Arenado to play for Team USA in World Baseball Classic

ST. LOUIS, Mo. (KMOV) - Ahead of his final season in Major League Baseball, Adam Wainwright will represent Team USA in the World Baseball Classic for the first time in his career.

MLB announced the news on Twitter Tuesday, after which Wainwright confirmed his commitment with a tweet of his own.

Lets get it! Proud to be able to represent our great country in the #WorldBaseballClassic 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸 https://t.co/0TyzoyGP5x
— Adam Wainwright (@UncleCharlie50) November 29, 2022

One could make the case that Wainwright telegraphed this announcement when he tweeted about his desire to represent his country while watching the Summer Olympics in 2021.

I love the olympics. Whenever the next Olympics are that have baseball I want in. If I have to be the bat boy or the assistant to the assistant pitching coach I will do it. Just want to be able to represent this great country. #USAUSA
— Adam Wainwright (@UncleCharlie50) July 26, 2021

Though he expressed a willingness via Twitter to someday serve as the bat boy for Team USA, it seems the American squad is thrilled to have Waino as part of its starting rotation, instead. Wainwright joins Cardinals teammates Nolan Arenado and reigning NL MVP Paul Goldschmidt on the Team USA roster, as the corner infielders have also committed to the team for the upcoming World Baseball Classic. Arenado and Goldschmidt also participated in the 2017 event that saw the United States win the championship.

Team USA will play its qualifying round games of the World Baseball Classic in Phoenix March 11-15. Of course, that’s right smack dab in the middle of the Cardinals’ Grapefruit League schedule, which should be observed for fans hoping to get a glimpse of the trio of St. Louis stars during a mid-March trip to Jupiter. But it would seem that getting the competitive gears grinding in an international tournament environment could only help Wainwright, Goldschmidt and Arenado as they ready themselves for the regular season.

The World Baseball Classic wraps up in Miami, March 17-21, which would allow the participating Cardinals to rejoin the club with about a week remaining in Grapefruit League play—assuming the United States make another deep tournament run in defending their 2017 title.

The 2017 WBC Final pitted the United States against Team Puerto Rico. Should that matchup happen again in 2023, it may feature Wainwright pitching against a team managed by his longtime Cardinals battery mate: Yadier Molina is serving as Puerto Rico’s manager for the tournament.