UPDATE: Wainwright is officially out for the remainder of the season with a torn Achilles tendon, according to Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
The St. Louis Cardinals starting rotation has the best ERA (1.97) in the MLB. That leading statistic is likely to take a big hit with the recent loss of ace Adam Wainwright.
The veteran right-hander was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Sunday with a left ankle and Achilles injury after stumbling out of the batter's box yesterday against the Milwaukee Brewers. The diagnosis is not good.
"Wainwright, 33, injured the lower part of his left leg running to first base on Saturday night," writes FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal. "The expectation, according to major-league sources, is that he will miss the rest of the season with an Achilles injury. Official confirmation would come from an MRI, which he is likely to have on Monday."
ESPN Insider Jim Bowden confirmed Rosenthal's report on Sunday.
Wainwright was 2-1 with a 1.44 ERA and 1.04 WHIP in four starts (25 innings) in 2015 before going down with the apparent season-ending injury. Despite the loss, the Cardinals are no strangers to this situation because they were without the right-hander for the entire 2011 season as he was forced to undergo Tommy John surgery.
That year they had veteran Chris Carpenter to take over the reigns, but now someone out of the current starting cast will look to serve as the rotation's leader. That'll be up to Michael Wacha (1.33 ERA), Carlos Martinez (1.35 ERA), Lance Lynn (1.56 ERA) and John Lackey (4.34 ERA).
According to R.J. White of CBS Sports, the Cardinals may call up Triple-A starter Tyler Lyons or promote Carlos Villanueva from the bullpen to take Wainwright's spot because fellow starters Jaime Garcia and Marco Gonzales are dealing with injuries right now.
The team called up catcher Cody Stanley in the meantime to take Wainwright's spot on the 25-man roster, but that may soon change once manager Mike Matheny makes a decision on who replaces his top starter.
More news will come following Wainwright's MRI on Monday.
