When a team is struggling with no sign of hope in sight, the organization has to get creative. The St. Louis Cardinals (10-23) continued their free fall in the National League, dropping their seventh game in a row to the Detroit Tigers Friday. Now, big changes are coming, starting behind the plate with catcher Willson Contreras.
After calling up catcher Tres Barrera from the minor leagues, fans were left scratching their heads. It did not take long for some much-needed clarity to be added, though. Contreras will have a different role for the time being, including playing somewhere that could be a big adjustment.
“The Cardinals aren’t just considering using Willson Contreras in the outfield. They will be,” The Athletic’s Katie Woo reported. “Contreras won’t catch much over the next couple of weeks. He’ll be used primarily as a DH and corner outfielder.”
Moving over to designated hitter is a sensible move for a big-hitting catcher like the three-time All-Star. A move to the outfield, however, is a surprise. Contreras has played 35 games in left field and four in right, so he can fill in occasionally, but a big investment was made in him replacing the great Yadier Molina as St. Louis’ new catcher.
Management has to make tweaks after a rough start to the season, but few would have expected those to be the plans they would be scrapping in early May. The 30-year-old is batting .280 with a .361 on base percentage and .421 slugging. His defense has never been his calling card, with his 2023 catcher framing strike rate being only 45.7 percent (37th in MLB, per Statcast).
The position change shows just how worried the Cardinals are in their struggling pitching staff. A new player to call games could have a dramatic impact on these outcomes and be the jolt this franchise desperately needs.
The brainstorming period has ended. It’s time to shake things up.
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