Cardinals: Pressure to replace a legend getting to Willson Contreras

The St. Louis Cardinals signed former Cubs catcher Willson Contreras to replace a legend in Yadier Molina. So far, it’s been a tough draw.

Replacing a franchise icon is never easy. Yadier Molina wasn’t just a future Hall-of-Fame catcher — he was the best defensive player at his position in the game. What Yadi lacked offensively towards the tail end of his career, he made up for in acumen, working with the Cards pitching staff and throwing out baserunners.

Yadi really could do it all.

As great as Willson Contreras is, he’s not Molina, at least not yet. He won a World Series with the team’s greatest rival, for goodness sake. None of this is lost on Contreras, who knows he has a lot of work to do to win over Cards faithful.

Cardinals: Pressure is getting to Willson Contreras

“In 2021, we had a really nice talk at Busch Stadium,” Contreras told ESPN. “The advice he gave me was ‘Don’t change who you are.’ That’s what makes you really good. You have to know who you’re catching and understand those days you can play at 100 percent and those days where you can play at 80 percent.”

Despite all of that, Contreras is off to a rough start from the plate. Through 12 games, the former Cub is slashing .171/.261/.195 with a .456 OPS. Contreras was never known for his ability behind the plate, but his bat typically made up for it in Chicago.

So far in St. Louis, it’s been the opposite.

“I wouldn’t call it replacing him,” Contreras said. “I would say I’m succeeding the best catcher in the game over the last two decades.”

Contreras is right. There is no such thing as replacing a player like Molina. With time, Cardinals fans will adjust to the differences between the two.

For now, though, Contreras needs to focus on just being himself.