Adam Wainwright proved pitchers can hit with this upper deck shot

St Louis Cardinals starter Adam Wainwright has carved out a pretty good career as a pitcher. The 34-year-old owns a 3.05 ERA over 11 years in the majors. He’s been elected to three All-Star games, been a finalist for both the Cy Young and MVP award and has won two World Series rings.

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So, yeah, the whole pitching thing has worked out for him. But in an alternate universe where Wainwright opted for offense, he probably could have made it as a power-hitting outfielder.

Wainwright proved as much Monday against the Philadelphia Phillies. While he struggled on the mound early, surrendering three runs in the third inning, Wainwright had a chance at revenge in the bottom of the fourth.

With two men on, Wainwright delivered an absolute bomb. He launched a 91 mph fastball from Jeremy Hellickson 408 feet into the second deck out in left field. The hit tied the game, and played a huge role in the Cardinals’ eventual 9-3 comeback victory.

As you can see from the above video, the ball landed in “Big Mac Land.” That’s the branded area of the park named after former Cards slugger Mark McGwire. Pitchers aren’t supposed to be able to hit the ball into “Big Mac Land.”

Wainwright isn’t exactly known for his hitting. He carries a .197 career batting average over 593 plate appearances. That said, there’s some evidence that he’s been locked in at the plate this year.

Adam Wainwright leads all pitchers in batted balls 100 MPH+ with 5. He has two tonight, 105.4 HR and a 105.7 MPH double.

— Daren Willman (@darenw) May 3, 2016

It’s also worth noting that the Pittsburgh Pirates considered drafting Wainwright as an outfielder back in 2000, according to Jenifer Langosch of the Saint Louis Post-Dispatch.

Interesting fact I learned when reporting feature on Wainwright: #Pirates were prepared to draft him in 2nd round (2000) as an outfielder.

— Jenifer Langosch (@LangoschMLB) October 3, 2013

That didn’t happen, obviously, but it gives you an idea of Wainwright’s abilities. He was once considered a pretty decent hitter.

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With that said, he’s probably glad he went the pitching route. “Chicks dig the long ball” is old and outdated now. We’re guessing Wainwright will take a game-ending strikeout over a dinger any day.

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