Cardinals insider calls out Cubs hypocrisy in Willson Contreras situation
By Curt Bishop
Willson Contreras has been every bit as good as advertised for the St. Louis Cardinals, despite the team's performance declining over the past few seasons.
Until a fractured arm took him out of the lineup for several weeks, Contreras was the Cardinals' best hitter. The veteran catcher is also one of only a few players to experience both sides of the rivalry between the Cardinals and Chicago Cubs.
Contreras left Chicago for St. Louis in December of 2022. Since Contreras left, Cubs insiders have reported some rumors about how his tenure on the North Side ended, criticizing him for alleged anger issues.
However, Cardinals writer Ben Frederickson clapped back and dropped a truth bomb on the Cubs, calling them out for trying to justify letting him go.
And how are Cubs doing at catcher since he left? #STLCards got this one right. You can tell because Chicago is still trying to justify letting him go. https://t.co/DTt8iWvWd8
— Ben Frederickson (@Ben_Fred) June 11, 2024
Cardinals writer calls out Cubs for letting Willson Contreras walk
Since Contreras left Chicago, the Cubs have not had much production from their catchers.
36-year-old Yan Gomes is hitting just .155 with two home runs. six RBI, and a miserable .432 OPS. Miguel Amaya is hitting .198 with two homers, 14 RBI, and a .552 OPS. In the grand scheme of things, this looks like the Cubs and their insiders trying to justify letting him depart for St. Louis back in 2022.
Even with the Cardinals in last place in 2023, Contreras hit .264 with 20 home runs and 67 RBI. He also had an .825 OPS. And before landing on the injured list this year, Contreras had an average of .280 and an OPS of .949 along with six home runs and 12 RBI.
Beyond a shadow of a doubt, he was the Cardinals best hitter before he injured his arm. Right now, the Cardinals and Cubs are in very similar positions. Both teams are two games under .500 and seven games back of the first-place Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central.
What's also interesting to note is that nobody in the Cardinals clubhouse has reported any issues with Contreras. Nothing negative has been said about Contreras from anybody associated with the Cardinals.
Contreras also handled a difficult situation beautifully last season when he was seemingly made out to be the scapegoat for the Cards pitching struggles. He continued to produce at the plate and never complained about being moved to the designated hitter spot.
It sure seems like the Cubs are missing Contreras but are afraid to admit it. Cubs insiders are also masking it with these recent reports about clubhouse outbursts.
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