Cardinals' Willson Contreras issues apology after heated exchange with Cubs closer

The St. Louis Cardinals were shut out for 22 innings after winning the first two games of in the recent series against the Chicago Cubs, but they kept the fight up until the last out of the series finale. Trying to help the team crawl out of a 3-0 deficit in the ninth, Cardinals first baseman Willson Contreras was drilled by a 100.5 mph fastball from Cubs closer Daniel Palencia.

Willson Contreras confronted Daniel Palencia but apologized after the dust settled.

A frustrated and always fiery Contreras responded quickly by yelling at Palencia, and it was later noted that he shouted for the closer to "throw strikes." Palencia obliged and struck out the next three Cardinal hitters to complete the second straight shutout. After notching the final out, Palencia shouted back at Contreras, which led to a quick and overall boring bench-clearing end to the rivals' first meeting of the year.

At the time of the hit by pitch, I was confused by Contreras' reaction because Palencia was obviously not bringing the tying run to the plate in a big game. Personally, I felt that the Cubs' righty was perfectly fine with his response back to a dominant finish to his save, which gave the Cubs a 4.5 game lead in the division. After the game, Contreras acknowledged that he was frustrated with getting hit rather than thinking Palencia was throwing at him.

"“I know I reacted the way I reacted — nobody wants a fastball at your face. I know he’s not trying to. I just said, ‘Throw strikes.’ My reaction was bad. I take that back. I apologize to the Chicago Cubs for the way I reacted. I am not trying to get another broken bone.

“I’m not trying to fight them. I’m not trying to fight anybody.”"

Willson Contreras

The St. Louis heat and the cold Cardinals offense could have contributed to Contreras' response. The first baseman was hitless with three strikeouts in the last two games of the series as the team did not score a run since the third inning of Tuesday's game. Anyone who has watched Contreras play either with the Cubs or with the Cardinals knows he crowds the plate, especially with two strikes. He has already been hit 13 times this season and has been struck by a pitch 119 times in his career, so he is no stranger to getting hit. After a fractured forearm knocked him out for half of the season last year, it is understandable that Contreras wants to take away any opportunity for another stint on the injured list.

Palencia told Cubs reporters that there was no intent in the hit by pitch. The young closer respects Contreras as a fellow Venezuelan and believes that the heat of the moment led to the flare in tempers.

Contreras also stated that he feels the teams are "even" after the series split and the teams have about a week to right their ships before their next outing. Both teams are fighting through some rough patches, but the Cardinals need to unlock their offense quickly before their July 4-6 series at Wrigley Field. The Cubs have two lefty starters in their rotation, and southpaws have been the kryptonite for an otherwise solid St. Louis offense.

Before the next series, the Cardinals will look to get back on track against the Cleveland Guardians and Pittsburgh Pirates before heading back to Chicago on July 4. The Cardinals currently sit third in the NL Central, 4.5 games behind the Cubs and 1.5 games behind the second-place Milwaukee Brewers. St. Louis is also one game out of the final Wild Card spot.