NEWSLETTER
Willson Contreras represents such an interesting part of the Cubs’ ongoing story. Despite being as talented and exciting as almost anybody in the “core,” or the World Series team in general, Contreras wasn’t a former first-round pick like Javy Baez, Albert Almora, Addison Russell, Kris Bryant, Kyle Schwarber, or Ian Happ. He also wasn’t a big-time free agent signing like Jon Lester, Jason Heyward, Ben Zobrist, or Yu Darvish. And he wasn’t acquired via a rebuilding trade like Anthony Rizzo, Kyle Hendricks, Carl Edwards Jr., or Pedro Strop.
As a former non-catcher signed out of Venezuela as a teenager, Contreras has his own unique path and history with the Cubs that separates him from the pack a bit. He’s the black sheep, if you will, though not in a bad way.
Earlier today, Sahadev Sharma published an excellent piece on the Cubs, Contreras, his 2018 season, and his future (and you should absolutely read it):
You know that line Theo loves so much? "Development isn't linear," and that sure looked to be the case with Willson Contreras. Some scouts shared with me what they thought went wrong in a disappointing 2018 for the talented catcher https://t.co/T7TMvwptdF
— Sahadev Sharma (@sahadevsharma) October 31, 2018
One thing stood out, in particular – giving me that feeling of remembering something I had previously forgotten:
Their trio of Contreras, Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo was supposed to be the heart of a dominant offensive lineup. While others in the lineup have various strengths and weaknesses when it comes to what they can do at the plate, the belief is that those three can hit for average, take walks and hit for power, adding up to a terrifying heart of the order. Obviously, that wasn’t the case in 2018.
Oh, yeah …. Before Javy Baez broke out and Willson Contreras broke, it was the Cubs young catcher who was supposed to carry his share of the team on his back. Indeed, when I thought of the Cubs roster before the 2018 season, I saw upside in a lot of places (Happ, Almora, Heyward, Schwarber, Baez, Russell), but consistency and expectations in just a few (Rizzo, Bryant, and Contreras).
And why not? Contreras had already delivered a quality second-half of 2016 and first half of 2017, before absolutely exploding after the All-Star back last season. Do you remember how good he was? In 150 second half chances in 2017, Contreras slashed .305/.407/.586 (157 wRC+) with ten homers, six doubles, 20 runs, 33 RBI, and 3 stolen bases – and that’s despite a hamstring injury that kept him out for a month. If you’re having trouble contextualizing this, just note that he was basically keeping up with Stanton’s historic second-half home run pace before the injury.
And to be sure, the good times were mostly there in the first half of this 2018 season, too. He wasn’t matching any MVP or home run champion paces, but his overall production (123 wRC+) was enough to justifiably secure the starting catcher job for the NL in the All-Star game.
But still, the power was sorely lacking, as we’ve explored, and everything came to a crashing halt in the second half: .200/.291/.294 (62 wRC+). Contreras hit worse in the second half of 2018 than Jason Heyward did in his first (and notoriously awful) season with the Cubs. Contreras wasn’t just not the consistent star the Cubs had thought they planted behind the plate, he was a liability. And while his still excellent defense buoyed him to the shore a bit, his pitch-framing issues were suddenly far harder to ignore.
So, heading into 2019, we’re left with some serious questions.
Fortunately, there are already some very interesting and exciting answers to those questions awaiting you at The Athletic. From limiting his deployments, to pairing him with the right back-up, to improvements against certain pitchers and staying healthier in general, Sahadev Sharma explores what it might take to get Contreras back to the place he needs to be. Because right now, he’s drifted back into that “upside” group, but we want him in that “sure-thing” group with Rizzo and Bryant, where he belongs.
I still have no doubt in my mind that he can be one of the best catchers in baseball (again). He might just need a little help from the Cubs front office and coaches (including a new hitting coach), who need to put him in the best position to succeed.
