Why the Willson Contreras trade is actually a good thing for the Cardinals

After Willson Contreras was dealt to the Boston Red Sox on Sunday night, many St. Louis Cardinals fans criticized the move. Some were sad to see him go after three seasons in St. Louis. Others were unhappy with the package St. Louis received in return. That said, this move was great business by Chaim Bloom, the new president of baseball operations for the Cardinals.

For starters, Contreras was owed a lot of money on his contract over the final two seasons. Even though St. Louis sent $8 million to facilitate the deal, Bloom still got $34.5 million off of the books for the future. As St. Louis intends on building a contender in the coming years, this money will come in handy when signing other free agents, rather than being spent on a depreciating asset that doesn’t fit the team’s current timeline. For that reason alone, this move makes sense.

Additionally, the Cardinals did get a prospect return. Although they didn’t fetch the top prospects in Boston’s system, they still received assets and a player who could possibly play a large role in 2026. Hunter Dobbins debuted for the Red Sox last season at 26 years old and earned a 4-1 record over 61 ⅓ innings with a 4.13 ERA. They also received two young pitching prospects in Yhoiker Fajardo (age 19) and Blake Aita (age 22). Within a new development system led by Chaim Bloom, these two could turn out to be valuable assets for St. Louis.

Trading Willson Contreras was the right decision for the Cardinals long term.

Even if they don’t, St. Louis made a move that optimizes opportunities for younger players who arguably played better than Contreras last season. That’s right, with Contreras now on the move, the Cardinals have cleared up space in the lineup for some of their brightest young stars. Alec Burleson can finally move to first base, his more natural position. The move also frees up an everyday spot for Ivan Herrera at DH.

In 111 fewer plate appearances than Contreras last season, Herrera recorded one less home run, 16 fewer hits, and 14 fewer RBIs. He did all of this while posting more stolen bases, a higher batting average, OBP, SLG, OPS and OPS+ than Contreras. Considering Contreras will be 35 years old entering the final season of his contract, Herrera is not only much younger (age 25) but also much cheaper.

Furthermore, the argument can be made that Alec Burleson had a stronger 2025 season than Contreras. In 17 fewer plate appearances, Burleson hit two fewer home runs with 11 fewer RBIs and trailed Contreras in OBP by .001. But Burleson topped Contreras in hits, SLG, OPS and OPS+, earning a Silver Slugger award in the process. He did so while continuing to learn left field, a position he was forced to stay in after Contreras moved from catcher.

Contreras signed a five-year pact with the Cardinals but only appeared in 148 games behind the plate over three seasons. Not ideal for a player who was signed to be the team’s catcher of the future. In those games, he posted a -13 defensive runs saved per average of 1,200 innings (approximately 135 games). At first base, he posted -1 in the same stat, the same number as Alec Burleson in 65 games at the position over two seasons.

Lastly, despite his value being somewhat justified by his offensive performance, St. Louis fans should be happy to have the money to spend elsewhere. Contreras never made an All-Star team with St. Louis despite three appearances as a member of the Cubs. In 10 career seasons, Contreras has yet to hit 25 home runs, has yet to drive in over 80 runs and has hit over .280 in a season once, his rookie season, where he hit .282 in 76 games. Although he led the Cardinals in home runs last season, that doesn’t say much. St. Louis finished nearly dead last in home runs hit last year, finishing 29th, ahead of only the Pittsburgh Pirates. As mentioned previously, it’s also pretty safe to say Herrera would have exceeded his total if it weren’t for 55 games missed.

In conclusion, Cardinals fans should be overjoyed to move on from Contreras. Not only do they receive value for a depreciating asset, but after recent seasons, Contreras never fit the timeline for success in St. Louis. Furthermore, considering Contreras’s no-trade clause, the contract could have played out with the Cardinals being unable to get any trade value out of him at all. Most importantly, St. Louis has younger, cheaper, and much stronger options to replace him with. So while it isn’t the move that some fans hoped for, it’s another good move from Chaim Bloom as he continues to lead the Cardinals in a rebuilding direction, as opposed to John Mozeliak, who played on both sides of the fence when it came to rebuilding/contending and saw no success on either side as a result.