ST. LOUIS • Stymied in the past by pitchers who happened to hit more homers or had previously won the award, Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright on Thursday claimed the trophy that he has annually predicted he would win.
Wainwright won the Silver Slugger Award as the National League's best hitting pitcher -- a first for him in his career.
He already has a prominent place in mind to put it.
The righthander, a .262 hitter this past season with a .452 slugging percentage, is the first Cardinals player to win the honor since Matt Carpenter was the Silver Slugger at second base in 2013.