Atlanta Braves news: William Contreras discusses ‘shock’ of Sean Murphy trade

The Atlanta Braves traded William Contreras to the Milwaukee Brewers as part of the 3-team deal that landed them Sean Murphy. Contreras was blindsided by the move.

To be fair, no one ever sees a trade coming, especially after an All-Star season.

William Contreras holds no ill will against Atlanta — the team which developed him into that All-Star talent worthy of being traded in part of a deal for Sean Murphy — despite the obvious fact that he was caught off-guard.

Murphy is one of the best catchers in all of baseball. Contreras, while elite at the dish, is trending away from the catcher position altogether. It made sense for the Braves at the time.

Contreras made his first All-Star team last year, slashing .278/.354/.506 with 20 home runs in just 97 games. The Venezuelan star is just 25 years old, and suddenly one of the core players on the Milwaukee Brewers roster.

Atlanta Braves news: William Contreras was surprised by trade

At Brewers spring training, Contreras spoke about the trade which sent him from Atlanta to Milwaukee, and how he felt in the moment.

“I spent my whole career with the Braves organization so it was a little bit of shock but after a couple of days you turn the page and realize it’s a business,” Contreras said, via the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “I’m thankful for the Brewers for trusting me and bringing me in, and I’m just working hard to help this organization win.”

Shortly after the deal, Contreras tweeted out a broken heart emoji, leading many to think he was upset about leaving the Braves. The 25-year-old cleared that up, and also thanked Milwaukee fans for their support.

“It was the shock of the moment,” Contreras said about his trade reaction tweet. “I’m just thankful to the (Brewers) fans for welcoming me in and I look forward to playing for them.”

Milwaukee fans hope that Contreras can help the team take another step forward, and back to the NL postseason.