Willson Contreras signed with the Chicago Cubs on July 2, 2009. And till Wednesday, they had been the one group he knew.
Contreras, thought to be among the finest offensive catchers in Cubs historical past, agreed Wednesday to a take care of the St. Louis Cardinals, who reportedly gave him a five-year, $87.5 million contract to interchange retired catcher Yadier Molina.
Contreras, 30, mentioned succeeding Molina could be “one of the great honors of my entire life.”
“I couldn’t be more excited about coming to St. Louis,” Contreras wrote Thursday in a narrative for The Players’ Tribune titled “Let’s do this, St. Louis!” “It’s a dream come true, for sure. At the same time, though, I’d be lying if I tried to say this wasn’t going to be a huge change for me … like it’s no big deal.”
Contreras recalled being 16 when the Cubs signed him out of his hometown of Puerto Cabello, Venezuela, when he was “barely old enough to drive a car.”
“I didn’t know any English,” he wrote. “All I knew was baseball. And the Cubs.”
Contreras earned a World Series ring in his rookie season in 2016, the Cubs’ first championship since 1908.
“And I couldn’t be more grateful that that’s how things went for me, either,” he wrote. “I’ve been so lucky to have been a part of the Cubs family for the past 13 years. It’s been an incredible ride! I mean, winning a World Series right off the bat? In my rookie season? It doesn’t get much better. And it’s an experience I’ll never forget.”
Contreras, a three-time National League All-Star, had a .256/.349/.459 slash line and 115 OPS+ in seven seasons on the North Side. He hit 22 house runs in 2022 to develop into the primary catcher in franchise historical past and seventeenth Cub general to file not less than 4 20-homer seasons.
A primary-inning grand slam May 16 in opposition to the Pittsburgh Pirates was Contreras’ a hundredth profession house run; solely two different Cubs catchers, Gabby Hartnett and Jody Davis, beforehand reached that milestone.
“I know I’ve given my all to the Cubs over the years,” Contreras wrote. “I did all the pieces I may to assist make the group higher. I performed by means of accidents. Left all of it on the market on the sphere. I’m pleased with what I’ve contributed.
“So I’ve no regrets about turning the web page. I labored extraordinarily arduous for a few years to get to this place, to be on this place. It’s one thing I’ve dreamed about — constructing a profession that may enable me to get to the place I’m proper now. And I’m shifting on realizing I did all I may for my group.
“But now my team is the Cardinals.”
Contreras will tackle his former group for the primary time in a three-game sequence May 8-10 at Wrigley Field. The National League Central rivals additionally will face off as a part of the MLB London Series on June 24-25.
“I will leave my heart out there on the field for this team. For this town. For St. Louis,” he wrote.
“This is a group that’s constructed to win. They’re constructed to win now, they usually’re constructed to win sooner or later, too. … I can’t wait to get to spend time with all of them and get to know them and begin working towards a world championship. I do know what it takes to get there. I’m pushed to get again — I need it greater than something. So this couldn’t be extra of a win-win. It’s the proper match. I can’t wait to get began.
“Now let’s go out and win some titles together, St. Louis.”
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Source: www.bostonherald.com