Matt Marton/USA TODAY Sports
A few hours after Aaron Judge re-signed with the Yankees on Wednesday morning, and before A.J. Preller added Xander Bogaerts at the end of the night in his latest push to field an entire roster of shortstops, the Cardinals agreed to a five-year, $87.5 million contract with catcher Willson Contreras. In doing so, they addressed both their biggest vacancy and one of their most glaring weaknesses from the past season.
Contreras, who turns 31 in May, is far more than just a viable replacement for the recently retired Yadier Molina, a future Hall of Famer; he’s a massive upgrade. The former Cubs backstop has long been one of the best catchers in baseball, and he’s coming off arguably his most productive season. Meanwhile, Molina played just as you’d expect a catcher in his age-39 season to play. It was his second-worst season of his career, behind his rough 2006 campaign, when he was a defensive stalwart still learning how to hit at the big league level.
