Yadi and Waino

The catcher makes history today. There was no one else who could be on the mound.

Yadier Molina. Adam Wainwright.

Adam Wainwright. Yadier Molina.

It’s almost impossible to say one name without the other. These two legends, icons of the Cardinal baseball faith, have been together so long there is no need for words between the two of them.

Wainwright first threw a pitch that Molina caught and MLB recorded in their statistics on September 23, 2005. They just missed each other a couple of weeks before that—Wainwright’s debut on September 11 came in the ninth inning of a Tony La Russa special, so Molina had been double-switched out of the game an inning before. Wainwright threw 13 pitches, 10 for strikes, and retired the side in order.

Nobody knew it then but something special had started.

A year and a month later, approximately, they had their iconic moment. More so than even ending the World Series with a strikeout of Brandon Inge, the curveball that froze Carlos Beltran to end the NLCS was their moment. As Cardinals fans, we can still see Yadi jumping out of his crouch and Waino fist pumping in celebration.

While Wainwright’s curveball (and Molina’s home run in the top of the frame) proved the difference, the at bat was set up by the young catcher having confidence in their bond. Molina had a plan on the mound but was inspired on the way back to the plate to change it. A changeup. To Beltran, who had a reputation not only of a playoff beast but a Cardinal killer. Wainwright could have shaken him off. He could have gone with the heat. He trusted, though, and the results are history.

The next year Wainwright moved into the rotation. The first start with a now-legendary battery was April 6, 2007. The last one, even 14 years later, still hasn’t happened.

It’s not been all sunshine and roses, of course. They had a great moment in the World Series in 2006, but the lingering image of the 2013 Series might be the two of them staring at each other after a popup dropped between them. Wainwright’s missed significant time due to injury, Molina less so but still has been battered and bruised.

They continue to play ball, though, and they continue to play ball together.

Currently, these two rank sixth on the all-time starts by a battery. Here’s the list:

Mickey Lolitch-Bill Freehan (324)
Warren Spahn-Del Crandall (316)
Red Faber-Ray Schalk (306)
Don Drysdale-John Roseboro (283)
Red Ruffing-Bill Dickey (282)
Waino-Yadi (276)

Barring injury, they are going to be fourth and knocking on the door for third at the end of the year. If they came back for another year, they might be able to take the top spot. Even as it is, though, this is a remarkable number. None of the other pairings were in the era of five man rotation. Lolitch and Freehan last played together the year I was born and that’s the most recent of the groups. In this era of free agency and of fewer starts by pitchers each year, this feels like a last hurrah. The odds of anyone else approaching this level seem infinitesimal.

Molina was scheduled to make his 2,000th start as a Cardinal last night against the Nationals. It was a reasonable assumption because, as we know, Molina doesn’t take a day off. His stamina and desire to keep crouching behind the plate are legendary. This year, people can’t even complain about it as Molina is hitting .353 with a 176 OPS+. Behind Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt, Molina has been the most consistent offensive force St. Louis has had. The lack of playing games last year seems to have helped rejuvenate him, at least in the early going.

Two thousand games is impressive enough in its own right. Only five other catchers have done that. But none of them, not a one, has done it with just one team. Not even close! Molina passed Gabby Hartnett for the most games caught with one team…back in 2018.

There would have been no shame in him catching Jack Flaherty for his milestone game. Even though today is a day game after a night game, there’s no reason to think Molina would have sat and missed a Wainwright start. Yet the bond these two have made it easy for Molina to take a break then to be out there with his brother now.

Today, in the top of the first, for the 2,000th time, Yadier Molina will trot out to home plate, crouch down, and receive warmup pitches. For the 277th time, he’ll be looking out and seeing #50 out there on the mound.

We wouldn’t have it any other way.