They could. Unfortunately, I don’t think it was the money. They never even made him an extension offer this year. I think the Cubs were ready to move on.
Lol yeah I think they’ve replaced those players with a lot of other high end talent. Your perspective is missing some pieces. What management has done to this team is embarrassing.
The dodgers also won 458 in those years compared to 358 by the Cubs. Theyve also made the playoffs every single year, been to 2 WS and won 1.
Basically one is replacing their 2017 team with better players, and the other is replacing team legends with lottery tickets and pieces off the scrap heap.
Honestly if you told me what is happening now is what would happen if we won a World Series I would take it 101/100 times.
But now that it's happening it really hurts. First Fowler going to the Cards and now Wilson... They're basically getting a perfect replacement for Yadi. And obviously trading our entire core hurts.
But we won our World Series. We can't complain about it...
It was also one of the most dramatic series comebacks and game 7s ever that was watched by a ton of people, and included a literal movie moment with the rain delay, any given Sunday speech. I’m happy with the win. It was epic.
I get the arguments against a few of the guys… but resigning nobody and banking on free agency and the next wave of prospects to completely rebuild the team is certainly *something*
That time, the team was languishing for years at the bottom of the division. There was not much talent in the first place, aside from Starlin Castro, to build a team around. This time around, things could have gone a lot smoother and quicker had they chosen a few players to retain and build around as leaders. Rizzo not kept, 1B is a position we desperately need to fill. Contreras clearly not favored by ownership as a building block. Schwarber let go, power bats are currently an urgent need for this team… This time around, we made it much harder on ourselves than we needed to, in part due to budgetary restraints.
Well, at least the revised “balanced” schedule won’t see the Cubs/Cards playing 18-19 games against each other per year. “Only” 14 games in 2023. No doubt STL will employ Molina to help Contreras with his framing.
This is gonna be so awkward for the fanbase. Literally everyone loved this guy, but we also have deep-seeded hatred for STL.
(Don’t kill me for this, but a tiny part of me kinda likes seeing Willy middle finger the Ricketts in the worst way possible)
The Ricketts do not give a single shit about the Cardinals lol. His fandom of the cubs started in college… look around, I have never met anyone in my life who ever started giving a shit about a baseball team at the age of 18.
They didn't want to pay that couple to make their seasons anymore so now the schedule is by a bot that doesn't give a fuck if you play 14 straight games against the same team.
Seems every franchise respects their best players besides a top 3 highest earning Cubs franchise. What a fucking joke. No reason for any free agent to sign with the Cubs when they continually spit in the face of all the fan favorites year after year.
I'm okay with this. I'll get downvoted to oblivion, but he's an aging catcher that isn't particularly good at pitch framing and might not even be good at calling games.
Sure, he's good offensively, but there are so much more important things a catcher needs to do to be great and it's kind of odd that the pitching staff got better when he wasn't behind the plate.
You’re right. It sucks he went to STL but good for him for getting paid. He gets one standing O from me and then…. Go Cubs
It’s a good thing the Cubs didn’t give him this contract. Even though it sucks.
I agree. His days catching are numbered. You're paying that many years for a guy who's gonna be DHing. Cheaper DHs who can stay healthy. Willson hasn't shown the ability to play a complete season where he doesn't fade in the 2nd half.
I take umbrage with you calling into questions Contreras’ health. The DH spot helped him stay healthy this past season. The Cubs had *no one* else to catch much of 2020, 2021 and they at times relied *heavily* on Willson. He has a lot of miles on his legs because he was catching all the time. That wore him down.
DH spot and having a reliable backup catcher will go a long way toward keeping Willy fresh.
Eating a couple years at $17m for an okay DH isn’t the end of the world when you’re getting an all star catcher in the first half of the deal
This team supposedly wants to be competitive next year and just let our best hitter (at the most scarce hitting position) go to our division rival. Correa/Bogaerts or bust at this point
You'll "get downvoted to oblivion" for stating the same thing that's been the most popular opinion in every single thread about Contreras for like the past year?
Meanwhile: if it's so obvious that he's such a terrible defensive catcher who's doomed to fall apart offensively any moment now due to old age... why did a team that, for quite some time now, has been *significantly and infuriatingly better than the Cubs at identifying and developing talent*, just sign him to a five-year deal?
To you, and anyone that is OK with this, what are the Cubs going to do at catcher?
It's not wrong to let a guy walk, and Contreras isn't a hall of fame player or anything.
But we can't win if the best catcher in our organization is Yan Gomes. Our best hope of a catcher coming from the farm system played in high A ball last year. We have no one on the roster that can play the position at even close to the level of Contreras.
So I'm not against Contreras leaving, as much as I am having no plan for the position.
I think Yan Gomes did a better job with the pitching staff than Wilson did though. I honestly don't see Wilson as a great catcher. Sure, a lot of other catchers won't hit like he will, but if the Cubs find someone who is great with the staff and can call a game that's an obvious upgrade over Wilson even if the hitting won't be there.
> but if the Cubs find someone who is great with the staff and can call a game
Who is that person though, that plays defensively well enough to make up for Contreras's bat?
That's the thing with catchers - they're the rarest people in baseball. It is so hard to find good ones in free agency and the Cubs don't have any in their farm system.
I'm not telling you that Contreras is great. He's good, not great. But good is a lot better than anything else we have right now.
I'm not the front office, but Contreras isn't the only option. If he was they probably wouldn't have let him go without so much as even offering him something.
Contreras has a great arm and his athleticism lets him make plays in front of the player. He's literally had seasons above league average at framing. He's at least average defensively as a whole package. Contreras framing last year was 0 runs, right in the middle of the pack, and he wasn't catching guys with reps that get the benefit of the doubt.
I don't think I would be ecstatic about this deal if the Cubs made this offer. The cost isn't too bad, but definitely wouldn't be thrilled about the years.
The Cubs just agreed to pay a guy, who's been batting .203 over his last 1000 at bats, nearly the same amount of money that Willson's contract will average out to, and you're calling *this* a massive overpay?
Jesus Christ, what's more important to you - contorting yourself to approve of every stupid bullshit decision this team makes, or the Cubs becoming the perennial winner that their fanbase deserves?
Edited to add:
"This adds a good starter into the rotation. A number 3 like guy. But we are very very well rounded with the rotation now. And we have a lot of depth.
I surely hope we make another move or two or three" - re the acquisition of Taillon.
"Good signing" - re the acquisition of Bellinger.
Are you fucking KIDDING us?
If they can afford to pay 17.5 million to an offensive hole for even one year, then they can pay a similar amount of money to a productive player who plays multiple positions, including one that history informs us will be difficult to fill. 17.5 million for a *good* player is a bargain.
If Contreras were to sign for 1 year, it would take a whole lot more than 17.5 to sign him, that's the point. And he'd never accept, because he can get a whole lot more guaranteed. You can't compare the AAV of a 1 year deal to a long contract.
If bellinger is bad, that sucks, but we're down 17m. If Contreras is bad, the Cards are down 85m. Its a much bigger risk on their part compared to a 1 year deal.
Yeah they signed Belli to a one year deal. ONE. YEAR. For 12.5 with an opt out kicker. In a position where Belli is one of the best fielders. Belli is also 27 and is much more likely to improve than regress with the bat (shift, scenery, etc.). Lastly, in a position that even a plus WAR is an improvement .
So yeah, I’d rather spend 18 million on a gold glove level center fielder who will likely improve at the plate due to several factors versus committing 90 million to a sub par catcher who is always hurt and is liable to slow down offensively.
Jesus Christ - this was a totally reasonable contract for a player of his caliber. You mean to tell me the Cubs didn't think he was worth this? They just threw 17.5 million at a player whose offensive production is similar to Willson's, if Willson was swinging the bat with one arm, or batting left-handed.
Agreed, I wasn't happy about losing Baez, Rizzo or Bryant but none of those trades look stupid in hindsight and I'm gonna trust the front office on this one too. They've already shown they're going to spend money, let's see what kinda team they build.
A guy who's such an absolute worthless garbage shit-tier player that no team wants him... does not get signed to a deal like this by a team that's noted for being good at scouting and development. It's not quite "the Rays are interested in a guy you think is bad" level, but the Cardinals -- for all that I hate them with my every breath -- still are on a different level than the Cubs with this stuff and *way* beyond the average redditor's understanding of player evaluation.
So everybody in this thread who's confidently predicting that it's a terrible deal should be asking what the signing team's scouts and coaches and front office saw in Willson.
> the reality is that Contreras was not worth keeping for the Cubs, and not worth signing for almost every other team in MLB.
and
> The best part will be watching the Cardinals pitching staff go from overperforming for 20 years with Molina to underperforming for the next five with Contreras.
Your words there. If you don't think he's that bad, why are you saying stuff like this?
Man, don't be using logic in here like that. Everyone wants to sign the player that gave them an endorphin rush, even though said player wanted more than they were worth.
Wilson 2022 815 OPS
Cubs OPS not including Wilson 69O
Gomez framing saved 1 run, Contreras framing was 0
This was a horrible move. They don't just have to replace their catcher, they have to replace the best offensive player on the team.
It’s criminal what they’ve done to this team. They won in 16 and are now just squeezing every dollar out of that they can.
We’re out here acting and talking like we’re the Oakland A’s in this thread! This is one of the most lucrative franchises in baseball, we deserve a consistent year in year out contender!
Saw this one coming from last spring when it was pretty clear the Cubs weren't going to extend him. I interpreted all of Willson's going over the top to say all of the right things and be a team man as super passive aggressive against the Cubs.
I’m going to laugh my ass off every time he hits a dinger against the cubs. They’re talking like they’re ready to spend and be competitive next season and then they let Willy go to the cardinals
At which point they'll call up some AAA jamoke no one ever heard of to replace him who will go on to have a prosperous 16 year hall of fame career for the Cards.
This hurts bad, but we can’t blame Willy on this one.
FO screwed him over time n time again, so I don’t blame the guy for wanting to stick it to Ricketts.
You reap what you sow, Tom
I called this soon as Molina said he was done. Absolutely devastated. The cubs could have easily paid him. Out of the entire core they extended 0 and signed Bote to a long term deal. They are completely out of their mind.
Edit. Yes Hendricks but more talking everyday players
I did. Even if the Cubs were to get Dansby right now, we’re still a worse offensive ball club than we were last year. The Cubs needs to seriously upgrade this offense with at least two more players.
So you're ok with the Cubs burning 17.5 million on a piece of shit hitter, but you wouldn't be ok with them spending 87.5m on the best catcher they've developed in your lifetime. Got it.
Admit it - you didn't expect Willson to sign for 87.5m over 5 years. If the Cubs had signed him for that, you would've shit your pants.
This could have been a bad decision by Willson. Will the Cardinals fans be nearly as forgiving of him if his production falls off? He didn't give them a championship and he's trying to fill the shoes of Molina. Sounds like a potential recipe for disaster.
They're in here right now furiously trying to defend themselves and downvoting anyone that dares question the FO. Which are the only Cubs they value apparently.
This sub should be happy that the worst defensive catcher in baseball and a sure albatross for the last three years of this new contract is going to St. Louis to ruin the Cardinals' pitching staff and payroll for the next 5 years.
I would have given him 3/$45, which was never going to be enough to get the job done, but this is a massive overpay for the Cards for a guy who will probably end up a full-time DH by 2025.
Sucks to see him go to a rival, but I wish him the best, just as I did Fowler.
Don't worry, guys. The 2022 Trade Deadline shows there's clearly not much of a market for Contreras. We'll probably be able to get him back for the QO.
He’s not good defensively at all. In fact he was 35th defensively per fan graphs last season. His bat is also not elite and never has been. His value as a hitter goes up when he slots in as a catcher but he plummets your pitching and defensive value in that spot.
17.5 AAV is what Tommy and Jed decided was too much. Guarantee it comes out that the Cubs never negotiated or offered any sort of deal. All for a compensatory pick...
If we don't use this "savings" by not signing at that price on more than a middling starting pitcher (Taillon), this isn't going to look great. Team is still in desperate need of offense and power.
Im sad any time a Cubbie goes to the Cards, but with his production expectation going forward, Im at least glad the Cards are sinking almost a 100m into a contract that won't likely be worth that.
Gross
First word out of my mouth when I got the notification.
Mine was a Vader-like NOOOOOOOO followed by a howl that sounded like a constipated Wookie. This is worse than Lester.
I laughed way too hard at constipated Wookie.
Same. Exact word
I read the headline and said, “This makes me want to vomit.” Fuck the Cardinals
The Cubs couldn't find $87.5 over 5? Jesus Christ.
They could. Unfortunately, I don’t think it was the money. They never even made him an extension offer this year. I think the Cubs were ready to move on.
I hope the Cards treat him better than the FO did. Good grief.
Hendricks is the last man standing.
And the Dodgers have like 3 people from their 2017 team still. To keep things in perspective here.
Lol yeah I think they’ve replaced those players with a lot of other high end talent. Your perspective is missing some pieces. What management has done to this team is embarrassing.
The dodgers also won 458 in those years compared to 358 by the Cubs. Theyve also made the playoffs every single year, been to 2 WS and won 1. Basically one is replacing their 2017 team with better players, and the other is replacing team legends with lottery tickets and pieces off the scrap heap.
He should retire to prove a point. This front office is abysmal
Do you not recall the Jim Hendry years or what?
Retire because his team sold off at the right time and doesn’t want to overpay a 30 year old poor defensive catcher for 5 years?
Rizzo is a Yankee and Contreras is a Cardinal. Someone please yank me off of the Matrix, I hate it here.
Someone please yank me off
Deshaun?
Okay but you gotta pay me first
Honestly if Rizzo didn’t wanna be a cub (prob bc the FO didn’t value him), I’m happy he’s finishing his career somewhere special where he wants to be
Shit at least he got an offer, and a decent one. Cone-treras and Schwarber they just let walk for nothing. It's embarrassing.
And the Cubs won a World Series. The price we pay.
We sold our souls to the devil for it
Honestly if you told me what is happening now is what would happen if we won a World Series I would take it 101/100 times. But now that it's happening it really hurts. First Fowler going to the Cards and now Wilson... They're basically getting a perfect replacement for Yadi. And obviously trading our entire core hurts. But we won our World Series. We can't complain about it...
Yeah, that was like 7 years ago...
It was also one of the most dramatic series comebacks and game 7s ever that was watched by a ton of people, and included a literal movie moment with the rain delay, any given Sunday speech. I’m happy with the win. It was epic.
You are out of the Matrix bro. This is what the real world looks like
Put me back in! Put me back in! And I want to be somebody important. An actor.
I don’t want to be an actor. Just put me back in October 2016 on repeat please and thanks.
I want to remember nothing, you hear. Nah. Thing.
The Jedtrix
We will always have 2016. Fuck this signing tho.
This is the worst timeline, jeez
It’ll all feel better once boegarts, Correa and dansby sign
…back with the teams they currently play for, like Judge?
Imagine teams signing their own homegrown players. And then there's the Cubs.
I get the arguments against a few of the guys… but resigning nobody and banking on free agency and the next wave of prospects to completely rebuild the team is certainly *something*
Is that not the exact strategy that won the series in 2016?
That time, the team was languishing for years at the bottom of the division. There was not much talent in the first place, aside from Starlin Castro, to build a team around. This time around, things could have gone a lot smoother and quicker had they chosen a few players to retain and build around as leaders. Rizzo not kept, 1B is a position we desperately need to fill. Contreras clearly not favored by ownership as a building block. Schwarber let go, power bats are currently an urgent need for this team… This time around, we made it much harder on ourselves than we needed to, in part due to budgetary restraints.
Man got his bag. Thank you Willy. FTC
FTC, FTP Also FTX lol
As an outsider what do those acronyms mean
Fuck the Cardinals. Fuck the Packers. FTX that weird crypto dude/scandal thing? Not sure about the x
Yeah FTX was a tongue in cheek joke about that stupid crypto company that ripped everyone off. Fuck the Cardinals Fuck the Packers
Federal Trade Commission, Federal Trade Protection, Federal Trade Xylophone
LOL
I’m going to throw up. This reminds me of when Dexter Fowler signed with the Cardinals. Pretty similar numbers — Fowler got $82.5M over 5 years.
I love Contreras, but hopefully this works out for the Cards as well as the Fowler signing did.
Hahaha
And Fowler fell off a fucking cliff lol
Yeah they paid the Angels to take him. Lol
Hey, that player to be named later may be named one day...
Holy cow I forgot how bad of a contract that was in hindsight
Iirc that turned out badly for the Cards
In fairness, Fowler was actually productive with the Cardinals his first year there. But then he fell off a cliff after year 1 in St. Louis.
Yeah, I looked at stats after posting … ready, fire, aim
OF ALL TEAMS WHY
Because they offered him the most money.
Apparently the Padres offered him even more than that.
I feel like this is the 10th time I've read this over the last few days.
Read my mind. Feel like this should be a meme at this point
Apparently nobody wants to go to the Padres no matter the price, as seen by Judge and Trea Turner
Players hate Machado too? I think it's possible.
posters on reddit hate Machado much more than anyone in baseball actually does.
If I were him I would go to the Cardinals too. That shit feels personal
Oh no
Fuck
Love you, Willy. Thanks for the memories. May you struggle mightily while wearing those colors my friend.
pain.
Well, at least the revised “balanced” schedule won’t see the Cubs/Cards playing 18-19 games against each other per year. “Only” 14 games in 2023. No doubt STL will employ Molina to help Contreras with his framing.
This is gonna be so awkward for the fanbase. Literally everyone loved this guy, but we also have deep-seeded hatred for STL. (Don’t kill me for this, but a tiny part of me kinda likes seeing Willy middle finger the Ricketts in the worst way possible)
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The Ricketts do not give a single shit about the Cardinals lol. His fandom of the cubs started in college… look around, I have never met anyone in my life who ever started giving a shit about a baseball team at the age of 18.
I only started watching baseball games this year at 25. I've been a fan of the Cubs since Sammy Sosa High Heat Baseball game in 2001 though.
I got into baseball at 30
cubs play their last games against STL in July next season. fucking weird.
They didn't want to pay that couple to make their seasons anymore so now the schedule is by a bot that doesn't give a fuck if you play 14 straight games against the same team.
Knowing Willson he'll be hurt for half of them
NOOOOOOOOO
Fuck this team.
Fuck right off with this.
Seems every franchise respects their best players besides a top 3 highest earning Cubs franchise. What a fucking joke. No reason for any free agent to sign with the Cubs when they continually spit in the face of all the fan favorites year after year.
I'm okay with this. I'll get downvoted to oblivion, but he's an aging catcher that isn't particularly good at pitch framing and might not even be good at calling games. Sure, he's good offensively, but there are so much more important things a catcher needs to do to be great and it's kind of odd that the pitching staff got better when he wasn't behind the plate.
You’re right. It sucks he went to STL but good for him for getting paid. He gets one standing O from me and then…. Go Cubs It’s a good thing the Cubs didn’t give him this contract. Even though it sucks.
People were freaking that he wanted Realmuto money. He was a bargain.
Right would've definitely liked to see him land somewhere else, but I think moving on from him is ultimately the right move.
I agree. His days catching are numbered. You're paying that many years for a guy who's gonna be DHing. Cheaper DHs who can stay healthy. Willson hasn't shown the ability to play a complete season where he doesn't fade in the 2nd half.
I take umbrage with you calling into questions Contreras’ health. The DH spot helped him stay healthy this past season. The Cubs had *no one* else to catch much of 2020, 2021 and they at times relied *heavily* on Willson. He has a lot of miles on his legs because he was catching all the time. That wore him down. DH spot and having a reliable backup catcher will go a long way toward keeping Willy fresh.
Eating a couple years at $17m for an okay DH isn’t the end of the world when you’re getting an all star catcher in the first half of the deal This team supposedly wants to be competitive next year and just let our best hitter (at the most scarce hitting position) go to our division rival. Correa/Bogaerts or bust at this point
Watch us get Murphy
You'll "get downvoted to oblivion" for stating the same thing that's been the most popular opinion in every single thread about Contreras for like the past year? Meanwhile: if it's so obvious that he's such a terrible defensive catcher who's doomed to fall apart offensively any moment now due to old age... why did a team that, for quite some time now, has been *significantly and infuriatingly better than the Cubs at identifying and developing talent*, just sign him to a five-year deal?
To you, and anyone that is OK with this, what are the Cubs going to do at catcher? It's not wrong to let a guy walk, and Contreras isn't a hall of fame player or anything. But we can't win if the best catcher in our organization is Yan Gomes. Our best hope of a catcher coming from the farm system played in high A ball last year. We have no one on the roster that can play the position at even close to the level of Contreras. So I'm not against Contreras leaving, as much as I am having no plan for the position.
I think Yan Gomes did a better job with the pitching staff than Wilson did though. I honestly don't see Wilson as a great catcher. Sure, a lot of other catchers won't hit like he will, but if the Cubs find someone who is great with the staff and can call a game that's an obvious upgrade over Wilson even if the hitting won't be there.
> but if the Cubs find someone who is great with the staff and can call a game Who is that person though, that plays defensively well enough to make up for Contreras's bat? That's the thing with catchers - they're the rarest people in baseball. It is so hard to find good ones in free agency and the Cubs don't have any in their farm system. I'm not telling you that Contreras is great. He's good, not great. But good is a lot better than anything else we have right now.
I'm not the front office, but Contreras isn't the only option. If he was they probably wouldn't have let him go without so much as even offering him something.
Contreras has a great arm and his athleticism lets him make plays in front of the player. He's literally had seasons above league average at framing. He's at least average defensively as a whole package. Contreras framing last year was 0 runs, right in the middle of the pack, and he wasn't catching guys with reps that get the benefit of the doubt.
He’s not a good catcher. This is a massive overpay
I don't think I would be ecstatic about this deal if the Cubs made this offer. The cost isn't too bad, but definitely wouldn't be thrilled about the years.
The Cubs just agreed to pay a guy, who's been batting .203 over his last 1000 at bats, nearly the same amount of money that Willson's contract will average out to, and you're calling *this* a massive overpay? Jesus Christ, what's more important to you - contorting yourself to approve of every stupid bullshit decision this team makes, or the Cubs becoming the perennial winner that their fanbase deserves? Edited to add: "This adds a good starter into the rotation. A number 3 like guy. But we are very very well rounded with the rotation now. And we have a lot of depth. I surely hope we make another move or two or three" - re the acquisition of Taillon. "Good signing" - re the acquisition of Bellinger. Are you fucking KIDDING us?
You cannot possibly be comparing a 1 year deal to a 5 year deal, right?
If they can afford to pay 17.5 million to an offensive hole for even one year, then they can pay a similar amount of money to a productive player who plays multiple positions, including one that history informs us will be difficult to fill. 17.5 million for a *good* player is a bargain.
If Contreras were to sign for 1 year, it would take a whole lot more than 17.5 to sign him, that's the point. And he'd never accept, because he can get a whole lot more guaranteed. You can't compare the AAV of a 1 year deal to a long contract. If bellinger is bad, that sucks, but we're down 17m. If Contreras is bad, the Cards are down 85m. Its a much bigger risk on their part compared to a 1 year deal.
Yeah they signed Belli to a one year deal. ONE. YEAR. For 12.5 with an opt out kicker. In a position where Belli is one of the best fielders. Belli is also 27 and is much more likely to improve than regress with the bat (shift, scenery, etc.). Lastly, in a position that even a plus WAR is an improvement . So yeah, I’d rather spend 18 million on a gold glove level center fielder who will likely improve at the plate due to several factors versus committing 90 million to a sub par catcher who is always hurt and is liable to slow down offensively.
Thanks I hate it
#FUCK #THAT I don’t care if I’m downvoted. He was my favorite player and I wanted him to be a lifelong Cub. FTC.
And on top of him being a Cardinal (yuck)…Willson gonna give them the inside scoop on our pitching staff.
I mean, the guy is a poor framer and isn't exactly known for calling a good game so I'm just fine with him sharing whatever it is he knows.
Jesus Christ - this was a totally reasonable contract for a player of his caliber. You mean to tell me the Cubs didn't think he was worth this? They just threw 17.5 million at a player whose offensive production is similar to Willson's, if Willson was swinging the bat with one arm, or batting left-handed.
Fuuuuuuuck
NOOOOOOOO!!!!
The 1st home run he hits at Wrigley, he will toss the bat so F'n high. The crowd will boo, but it will be hilarious.
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Agreed, I wasn't happy about losing Baez, Rizzo or Bryant but none of those trades look stupid in hindsight and I'm gonna trust the front office on this one too. They've already shown they're going to spend money, let's see what kinda team they build.
A guy who's such an absolute worthless garbage shit-tier player that no team wants him... does not get signed to a deal like this by a team that's noted for being good at scouting and development. It's not quite "the Rays are interested in a guy you think is bad" level, but the Cardinals -- for all that I hate them with my every breath -- still are on a different level than the Cubs with this stuff and *way* beyond the average redditor's understanding of player evaluation. So everybody in this thread who's confidently predicting that it's a terrible deal should be asking what the signing team's scouts and coaches and front office saw in Willson.
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> the reality is that Contreras was not worth keeping for the Cubs, and not worth signing for almost every other team in MLB. and > The best part will be watching the Cardinals pitching staff go from overperforming for 20 years with Molina to underperforming for the next five with Contreras. Your words there. If you don't think he's that bad, why are you saying stuff like this?
Man, don't be using logic in here like that. Everyone wants to sign the player that gave them an endorphin rush, even though said player wanted more than they were worth.
This really hurts.
In Spain but the S is silent
Goodbye my sweet summer child
This one hurts. We could have matched that. He's still a top 3 catcher. Not an overpay for what he brings to the team.
So we don’t trade him and then we just let him sign with the cardinals
he going to kill us and celebrate hard, get ready for it.
Wow what a slap in the face
Me and Jed are through.
Why didn’t they want to pay him?
I start to feel optimistic about the 2023 season and then immediately shot down
Wilson 2022 815 OPS Cubs OPS not including Wilson 69O Gomez framing saved 1 run, Contreras framing was 0 This was a horrible move. They don't just have to replace their catcher, they have to replace the best offensive player on the team.
It’s criminal what they’ve done to this team. They won in 16 and are now just squeezing every dollar out of that they can. We’re out here acting and talking like we’re the Oakland A’s in this thread! This is one of the most lucrative franchises in baseball, we deserve a consistent year in year out contender!
So bad that we didn't trade him.... really bad personnel management to not trade or sign him
we were gonna trade him for urquidy but dusty said no
Well, dusty got a ring, so maybe he knew something we didnt.
Dusty has said he said no because he felt uneasy bringing in a new starting catcher in the middle of the season
Saw this one coming from last spring when it was pretty clear the Cubs weren't going to extend him. I interpreted all of Willson's going over the top to say all of the right things and be a team man as super passive aggressive against the Cubs.
I’m going to laugh my ass off every time he hits a dinger against the cubs. They’re talking like they’re ready to spend and be competitive next season and then they let Willy go to the cardinals
It's deserved - he should still be a Cub
I expect Cards will regret this deal by 2025
At which point they'll call up some AAA jamoke no one ever heard of to replace him who will go on to have a prosperous 16 year hall of fame career for the Cards.
I, too, am trying to find a way to cope with this At the very least he'll already be 31 by the time next season rolls around
Good for him. Glad he found a team that values him when the Cubs didn’t.
I hope they have a plan because this sucks.
They thought they were going to trade Contreras for a haul. Instead they're getting a sandwich pick. Only the deluded believe this FO has a firm plan.
This hurts bad, but we can’t blame Willy on this one. FO screwed him over time n time again, so I don’t blame the guy for wanting to stick it to Ricketts. You reap what you sow, Tom
Good for Wilson. Hope he plays well against everyone but us.
Pain.
Fuck that
Dang
PAIN
Wtf is this timeline?!
Noooo. Any team but the Cardinals.
Thanks, Willson. More Cub heartbreak.
i am once again asking to update the banner...
Worst news of the offseason
Yet we can afford to pay Bellinger $17.5M next year, smh….
I’m gonna be sick
I hate my life.
Do we boo come April?
I called this soon as Molina said he was done. Absolutely devastated. The cubs could have easily paid him. Out of the entire core they extended 0 and signed Bote to a long term deal. They are completely out of their mind. Edit. Yes Hendricks but more talking everyday players
Hendricks was extended.
Ugh. He's going to be a Cub Killer, isn't he?
Jesus. I didn’t want him back for that length or price.
In this market I honestly thought he would get more.
I'm honestly wondering if everyone in baseball knows something we don't. It's so weird he wouldn't get more and couldn't get traded
I did. Even if the Cubs were to get Dansby right now, we’re still a worse offensive ball club than we were last year. The Cubs needs to seriously upgrade this offense with at least two more players.
Your thoughts on signing a guy like Bellinger for a similar price?
We aren't stuck with Bellinger for more than a year.
It’s a 1 year deal. Big difference
So you're ok with the Cubs burning 17.5 million on a piece of shit hitter, but you wouldn't be ok with them spending 87.5m on the best catcher they've developed in your lifetime. Got it. Admit it - you didn't expect Willson to sign for 87.5m over 5 years. If the Cubs had signed him for that, you would've shit your pants.
This could have been a bad decision by Willson. Will the Cardinals fans be nearly as forgiving of him if his production falls off? He didn't give them a championship and he's trying to fill the shoes of Molina. Sounds like a potential recipe for disaster.
Fuck the Ricketts, they could've paid him that easily, or at least traded him with the rest of the core for more farm options.
Bad news: Willson Contreras went to our rivals Good news: I got Morgan Wallen tickets after fighting through Ticketmasters verified fan presale
lot of money for a DH
He’s not even valuable as a DH though. His value is his offense as a catcher because they typically do not hit well.
He had a much better OPS than the other guys that DH'd last year.
Remember all the fans on here who were glad he was leaving because of his pitch framing?
They're in here right now furiously trying to defend themselves and downvoting anyone that dares question the FO. Which are the only Cubs they value apparently.
This sub should be happy that the worst defensive catcher in baseball and a sure albatross for the last three years of this new contract is going to St. Louis to ruin the Cardinals' pitching staff and payroll for the next 5 years.
I’m still glad we didn’t pay this price. He’s just not a good catcher
I would have given him 3/$45, which was never going to be enough to get the job done, but this is a massive overpay for the Cards for a guy who will probably end up a full-time DH by 2025. Sucks to see him go to a rival, but I wish him the best, just as I did Fowler.
Don't worry, guys. The 2022 Trade Deadline shows there's clearly not much of a market for Contreras. We'll probably be able to get him back for the QO.
Big difference between giving up value for a pending free agent and being able to sign someone outright. Love Willy, but no thanks on 5 years
Exactly this ^
I'm not holding my breath.
for a good defensive and an elite bat this seems like a steal. even if they DH after two years 17 million is a good price
He’s not good defensively at all. In fact he was 35th defensively per fan graphs last season. His bat is also not elite and never has been. His value as a hitter goes up when he slots in as a catcher but he plummets your pitching and defensive value in that spot.
The qualifying offer by the Cubs was for $19+m … yeah, one year only… but $17m per for 5 yrs … big overpay.
17.5 AAV is what Tommy and Jed decided was too much. Guarantee it comes out that the Cubs never negotiated or offered any sort of deal. All for a compensatory pick...
He's dead to me.
It was inevitable
I'm crying again.
If we don't use this "savings" by not signing at that price on more than a middling starting pitcher (Taillon), this isn't going to look great. Team is still in desperate need of offense and power.
Fucking Ricketts
Blame Hoyer, he's got the budget to sign Contreras, he didn't want to.
Don’t let the door hit you on the way out
Im sad any time a Cubbie goes to the Cards, but with his production expectation going forward, Im at least glad the Cards are sinking almost a 100m into a contract that won't likely be worth that.
Least liked player of the core now. We should hit him more than the Brewers did 😂 jkjk calm down
Benedict Willson