3 STL Cardinals still giving encouraging signs and 2 who are failing

2. Willson Contreras has been an easy out in the STL Cardinals lineup

Better days have to be ahead for Willson Contreras as part of the Cardinals lineup because, frankly, it can’t get much worse for the big-name offseason signing for St. Louis.

Even when you remove the entirety of the catcher/DH drama that Contreras was at the heart of, it’s no secret that the season-long numbers for the former Cubs fan-favorite haven’t been good as he’s hitting just .210 with only a .662 OPS on the year, a far cry from what the Redbirds thought they were adding when they inked him to such a lucrative deal in free agency.

Somehow, though, things have actually been even worse for Contreras recently.

In the month of May, Contreras had 101 at-bats and slashed a measly .168/.257/.317 with an appalling 31 strikeouts. He did hit three home runs and six doubles but, at a .168 clip, that’s far from an overly positive sign. And it’s only been more harrowing through six games in June while concerningly being in a similar vein of all power and no consistency, slashing .111/.200/.444 with both of his hits being solo home runs.

With each passing day, the addition of Contreras starts to look more like a weighty albatross on the shoulders of the Cardinals organization. Since it’s been going on for more than a month now, too, it’s hard to see any light at the end of the tunnel.