There were very high expectations when catcher Willson Contreras joined the St. Louis Cardinals last offseason.
However, as the halfway mark of the season approaches, Contreras has been miserably underperforming and neither side is happy about it.
Contreras recently spoke out about his loss of confidence, coinciding with the Cardinals struggles, as they fell to a disappointing 27-41 record last night, placing them at the bottom of the National League standings.
Reflecting on his current performance, Contreras expressed his frustration, saying, “This is my first time since I’ve been in the big leagues that I have struggled this bad. I think I’ve lost my confidence and I lost my trust and lost the trust that I came into the season with.. It just went away.”
Despite the challenges, the 31-year-old catcher understands that the only way forward is to keep pushing. “I don’t think, I know I have to keep going. Right now, I have to find ways to get myself going. I’ve been hitting the ball hard, but right to people.”
“That’s something that is out of my control, but man, I just have to keep playing hard one play at a time and be the best that I can for the team and my teammates.”
While his positive attitude is commendable, it is far from ideal for Cardinals fans to hear about Contreras’ loss of confidence, especially after signing a lucrative five-year, $87.5 million deal with the team during the offseason.
St. Louis has struggled significantly this season and Contreras is a major reason why.
He’s batting a dismal .201 – 42 points lower than his All-Star mark last season and 36 points lower than his previous worst MLB season in 2021 when he batted .237.
“I’m looking for answers, for sure, but we’re playing [poorly], and that’s really the only answer right now,” he emphasized.
The Cardinals face an uphill battle if they hope to compete for a wildcard spot in the National League, currently sitting 8.5 games back.
If they’re somehow able to climb back into playoff contention, the high-priced Contreras will have to be a reason why.