Adam Wainwright backtracks after suggesting he gave Derek Jeter an easy 'pipe shot'

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When Derek Jeter stepped to the plate in his final All-Star Game on Tuesday, Adam Wainwright may or may not have had a sense of the moment, throwing a very hittable pitch that Jeter roped to right field for a double.

He also added that "If I knew (Jeter would hit a double)...I might've changed my mind."

Later in the broadcast, however, Wainwright backed off of this statement, suggesting it was dry wit was misunderstood:

Wainwright was put on the spot in the dugout, on camera, and was apologetic yet adamant he didn't groove one in there. He was bright red, and clearly embarrassed.

It's certainly possible Wainwright felt the heat and needed to backtrack on his statements, because people are obviously going to jump all over something like this, fair or otherwise. Wainwright giving something less than his best is justifiable given the circumstances, but admitting it was definitely a mistake in judgment.

(It's also worth noting that Wainwright's St. Louis Cardinals were the road team in last year's World Series after the National League lost the All-Star Game.)

But did Wainwright really serve one up? The pitch was classified as a 90 MPH cut fastball, though the velocity and break both suggest it was more in line with Wainwright's standard four-seamer. The location is where some may take issue:

[Photo courtesy MLB.com]

Surprisingly, Wainwright has left fastballs over the plate fairly often this season, with 53 of the 859 fastballs and cutters he's thrown coming right down the middle of the zone.

[Courtesy Basebal Savant]

So, what do you think? Did Wainwright serve one up to let Jeter get his moment? Jeter doesn't know, but he appreciates the help, if it was there: