What has gone wrong for Willson Contreras this season?
When the <a href="https://www.vivaelbirdos.com/">St. Louis Cardinals</a> signed Willson Contreras in the offseason, big things were expected out of their prized acquisition. Not only was he taking the place of franchise icon Yadier Molina behind the dish, but he was also coming off of his third All Star season where he hit 22 homers and had an xwOBA of .364 which was in the 94th percentile in baseball. This season though he has struggled badly to the tune of a triple slash line of .201/.293/.355 with eight homers, certainly not what the Cards were expecting when they handed him $87,500,000 this offseason. So, what has gone wrong for the former Chicago Cub? Is it a case of bad luck, an adjustment in his stance, has he just regressed as a player or is it possible he is actually getting better?
What do the analytics say about Willson Contreras?
The St. Louis Cardinals made a splash last week in signing former Chicago Cubs catcher Willson Contreras. It was long rumored that the Cardinals were simply going to make some smaller moves this offseason and head into next season with largely the same team. However, signing the 3 time All Star catcher was anything but a small move as he was one of the best hitters on the free agent market. Contreras is brought in to replace franchise icon Yadier Molina, although his impact will go beyond that as he brings an impact third bat that the Cardinals did not have last season.