Willson Contreras Is Moving To First Base! Is This A Good Or Bad Move For Him And The Franchise?

[@TheMooCowReturns]

Moooving Cowtreras to first is a no-brainer - the issue was if he would accept that, given all the crap he went through when he got here over his catching (unjustified, IMO). COWever, we are lucky because its cowming from him that he is willing to do this to avoid injury and prolong his career - and we should be very thankful. He is a great team player. Now, if Arenado goes, we can solidify the IF with Cowtreras at first, Saggese at 2nd, Wynn at SS, and Donovan at 3rd, and that is a very solid IF. :=8)

[@discostu483]

Wilson started out being treated badly and Is still willing to do whatever he’s asked speaks volumes. His offense may get better as well not having to deal with the grind of a catcher.

[@Austin_Dale]

As long as Contreras is hitting, I really don’t care where he plays. This gives the chance for Herrera to be in the lineup as well.

[@AndrewWilliams-nm9nu]

Definently lookn forward to seeing Contreras play 1st next season!!

[@chrisdowdle9326]

Bad idea if you’re Baker. That poor dude.

[@reddrydor]

I agree I would hope they would trade him because he has earned a chance to play everyday

[@edweed6039]

Errors will go up for the entire infield drastically. Sounds like a "Marmol Move". So much for the young players.😂

[@rayrussell6258]

Wrong. It's a Mozeliak move.

[@Excitegaming0]

@@rayrussell6258wrong it’s a chaim bloom move. He’s in charge after this year, you don’t think he’s running the show now to set up his tenure?

[@derrickbrooks2549]

@@Excitegaming0crazy how people don’t understand this. Bloom is making a lot of calls with Mo

[@Excitegaming0]

@@derrickbrooks2549 forreal like Mo isn’t going to make a bunch of changes Chaim is just gonna roll back on when he officially takes over. They are discussing each move together.

[@RichRobben1]

I like this idea!!! I felt this way while I was hating on Goldy for sucking!!! Contreras and Burly switching back and forth from 1st/DH...??? I think this is ideal!!! And this will add what...??? 2-4 years to his career... It keeps Willie on the field... Keeps Burly in the lineup and worst case scenario, Baker is there in case of injury. AND... What about moving Gorman back to 3rd??? His original position. Could that opening up his offensive side??? Same could be said for Jordan Walker. Could moving Walker back to 3rd open up other aspects of his game??? I think both should be considered.

[@davidcobler5705]

Hey JD; Catchers have to have soft, quick hands. That makes it easier for them to transition to either 3B or 1B. Besides those you mentioned, Joe Torre became a full time 3rd baseman and MVP in 1971. He also played 1B. He was a full time catcher during most of the 60’s, being chosen to the NL AllStar team, several of those years. That being said, I think Contreras will work out well at 1B, especially since he has agreed to managements reasoning. He understands the Cardinals are in the midst of transition and is onboard with everything, else he would have asked to be traded.

[@alexfearday962]

I agree with the move to first base to hopefully keep him healthy and keep him a cardinal

[@JohnShanholtz-vy6ol]

Contreras to first makes perfect sense. What do we have to lose!!

[@helgaratbone1691]

Allot of baseball games.

[@dennishaas4745]

JD I agree, I thought it would be Herrera moving to first because of his throwing arm. Who will fill in at catcher if Pages or Herrera gets hurt or struggles badly, will Contreras go back to catch or will Crooks get promoted ?

[@Jens-we3vg]

Great move, should give walker some reps there too. I like baker and never got his fair chance so i think id package him.

[@BillDownton]

It changes my win total for next year

[@BillDownton]

I wonder if when his hand got hit he cant grip the ball as well now I would much rather have his bat than Bakers and Bakers defense is not that good

[@SpaceMagicStorm]

I like the move for allot of reasons, Contreras wants to stay (exciting about that), he is getting older so catching is harder on the body like you said with the squatting for two hours, if he gets lots of practice in the off season to try and practice run drills or whatever I think it'll be good, apparently Luken Baker is already 27 there has got to be reasons why they are choosing to do this vs using him I imagine they may consider moving on from Baker all together, and Herrera is getting more practice this off season in DR playing for Pujols and the Leones really excited to see in what ways he may improve as well. Honestly I was thinking next season would be a wash but after hearing Contreras and Gray want to stay actually starting to get optimistic for next season again.

[@YeohosuaSenpai]

Agreed! I think this was a personal request by Contreras. If I got hit by a fully throttled J.D. Martinez bat swing and it turn my radius and ulna into peanut brittle, I would throw up the white flag too. My guy is tired of getting f'd up behind the plate.

[@YouMeandHumanity]

Wilson at first will be great. I am so thrilled they kept all 3 catchers. Baker has huge holes in his swing that I hope he figures out because his batting eye has gotten better. I see Ivan at dh a lot. Outfield is still a mess and will be fun to watch who wins those jobs in spring. At least we have plenty of bodies to throw at the problem.

[@prestonbucher18]

He contributes with his bat and moving him to 1st keeps him fresher and hopefully healthier, which should hopefully improve his offensive numbers. I like the move and is what I was hoping would happen. Luken Baker can be a DH and a backup 1B. I don’t see an issue here.

[@kenbo1512]

As long as Contreras drives in runs I’m good with this.

[@billbayes3261]

JD, this smells of Mo. Signing Contreras in the first place was one of the bad Mo moves. The Cubs let him go for a reason. Big red flag! We need a young catcher who can throw out runners and be a field general. Here we go again JD. Who is going to be as good defensively as Goldie (Yadi)? YOUR BARGAN AT FIRST BASE IS LUKEN BAKER WHO HAS NEVER BEEN A PROSPECT? WHY? Will Luken Baker ever get a chance to play every day? We don't know what he can do. How many triple A home runs does he need to hit to get that chance? 4,000??? This move is a Mo and Ollie move. It sucks! I thought we were in a rebuild and going with "younger" players. On the other hand, is this a ploy to make Contreras more sellable in the off-season? Just a thought JD? We still don't have a good defensive catcher either. Younger players, lower budget and a rebuild. This move Flys in the face of that. We again will never know what Luken Baker can do unless you make him your every day DH. Another player that can possibly mash 30 to 40 home runs sitting the bench. This has Ollie all over it. Why not move Ollie's favorite player to first - Fermin? Lol😅 This move sucks JD. The Cardinals should have the decency to trade Baker so he can mash 30 to 40 a year for someone else. That has become the Cardinals MO, for the last 7 years - no pin intended.

[@prestonbucher18]

“Unless you make him your everyday DH”….. Right…..Maybe THAT is the move the Cardinals make. How about letting things play out before flying off the handle…..

[@billbayes3261]

@prestonbucher18 I already watched it play out in September when they called Baker up from triple-a and let him sit the bench. I knew that it had to drive him up the friggin wall.

[@KATHYHORNE-s1z]

I like Contreras and I also hope they don't overlook Luken Baker.

[@MikeBlair-ce1er]

Might keep him healthy. I like it.

[@rayrussell6258]

yeah right, when he blocks first base to make a tag on the batter running to first, gets his shoulder wrenched in the process (like Max Muncy did a couple years ago playing 1B without knowing how to play the position), and goes on IL for a month, don't forget you said that! 😉

[@derrickbrooks2549]

@@rayrussell6258small sample, but he has already played 11 games at first so it’s not completely foreign to him. Also, let’s not act like catchers don’t move to first base

[@rayrussell6258]

@@derrickbrooks2549 if he was a better defensive catcher, I'd have less reason to worry about him moving to 1B. And those 11 games were with the CUBS, for crying out loud. That doesn't count! 😉 A big part of the reason the Cardinals have been losing too many games is because Mo prioritizes offense over defense and pitching. Moving Contreras to 1B to replace a VERY good 1B (Goldy) is going to be another bad choice by Mo.

[@derrickbrooks2549]

@ what? It doesn’t count because it was with the Cubs? Ok 😂😂😂

[@ghostfacegaming22]

I'm excited to no as a fan that contreras and sonny grey r not being dealt i wil def be n2 the season more now good desicion front office I'm sure they can get a good return on arronado good luck id like to c them hang on to helsly tho n case we were a wild card contender the club has the potential to contend if not u can trade him at the deadline play it safe i like the team now go cards!!

[@tonynelson2259]

Another drunk move by Mo

[@rayrussell6258]

sounds right to me! Most things Mo has done to this franchise lately, being drunk is the only explanation. Contreras can't block low pitches as a catcher, just wait and see what a mess he creates when Winn fires a bee bee over to him at 1B low and outside!

[@DennisFahlstrom]

That depends …on whether he can play 145 games a season shuffling between 1B and DH or if he remains an IL queen like Fowler was. If his availability doesn’t dramatically improve from the 100 games per season it has been the past 2 seasons I would say get rid of him despite his team leading offense. Like Fowler, he isn’t worth his contract of 18MM a season when he spends 60 games a year hurt and not available

[@derrickbrooks2549]

For starters, one injury happened from getting hit by a bat BEHIND THE PLATE. Let’s see you take a bat to the arm and have it not break. Second injury was a ball to the hand. You think you’re escaping that too?

[@mwconservative]

WHY??? Cards already have options there. If they don’t want him behind the plate trade him for a plus package. They are looking to trade many others. Often times Card trade actions make absolutely no sense.

[@Jay_Mike]

I told myself I wasn’t going to watch ANY cardinal offseason stuff….because of the joke that is our leadership…yet here I am for more torture…great

[@davidcobler5705]

@Jay_Mike. LOL😅…Its ok. You’re like the rest of us. We’re all addicted to Cardinal baseball. These Cardinal Podcasts will help you get through the winter. 😂. Loved your comment! Thanks for a good laugh!

[@BobFarris-o1j]

How many catchers have become GOOD first basemen? I can think of about five. We are moving from one of the premier glovemen to this. IMHO this is a terrible move. I predict infield errors will explode next year.

[@Bigbirdreese1600]

😆😆 cards will still stink like dookie.😂

[@tonycomer1415]

JD, most of the idiots watching this are never happy. They are trolls, who think they know everything

[@dennissmith5042]

Bad idea very bad