St. Louis' Willson Contreras & The Gold Glove
- Charles I. Guarria
- Sep 29
- 3 min read
Updated: Nov 3
Throughout his 10-year career Willson Contreras has been equal parts hated and loved by fans, management and players.
One aspect of his game that both the haters and appreciators can agree on is that he was less than average as a defensive catcher.
In fact, his catching acumen, or lack thereof, was perceived to be so bad that in 2023 some Cardinal pitchers privately complained. Those complaints led St. Louis management to give Mr. Contreras a try in the outfield, for a nanosecond; the idea never resulted in playing the position in a game for St. Louis.
Once the nanosecond passed, Mr. Contreras picked up his catcher's mitt and moved back to the backstop position, along with some designated hitting. That was a smart move, given he was not very good in the outfield with the Chicago Cubs.
But then, a funny something happened to Mr. Contreras as he again left the Cardinals' catching equipment for his teammates to don, and he took his position at first base for the 2025 season.
He got good on defense.
Actually, he got better than good and should be in consideration for the Gold Glove award.
What?! Contreras is that good?!
Yes, fans, he is.
To wit. This season, Mr. Contreras sported the third-best outs above average for a first baseman in the National League, per Statcast. The top spot goes to Matt Olson, of the Atlanta Braves, he checks in with nine outs above average. Mr. Contreras has six outs above average.
Mr. Contrereas is also the MLB first base leader of the pack when it comes to arm strength. Statcast lists him with an average of 88.2 MPH on his throws. That is well above the league average of 78.4 MPH. Seattle Mariner Josh Naylor is number two with an 89.4 MPH.
A strong arm helps to gun down runners at the plate and begin 3-6-3 and 3-6-1 double plays. Given that, it is easy to see how his outs above average is so good.
He doesn't fare as well according to The Fielding Bible Award, which puts Mr. Contreras' defensive runs saved at zero. For context, his minus one is better than the Phillies' Bryce Harper (-2) and the Dodgers' Gold Glove-winning Freddie Freeman (-8).
It is important to note that the move to first base this season was not necessarily because of his defense. Though the eye test does show starting catcher Pedro Pagés to be the better.
The reason given for the switch was to allow Mr. Contreras to play a position that would be less taxing on his body, therefore keeping his bat in the lineup longer. He still got hurt, but played in 135 games with a 122 OPS+
True, Willson Contreras will never be put on the same level that Keith Hernandez attained as one of the greatest defensive first basemen of all time. And despite Mr. Contreras' fleet of foot, better than average range on the diamond dirt, he won't be given the nickname The Fred Astaire of Baseball anytime soon.
But this year, ball fans, expect to hear the name Willson Contreras in the conversation when the best fielding first basemen are discussed.
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Charles I. Guarria is an author, reporter and host based in the state of Florida, USA, covering any topic, anywhere in the world. His career began in 2009. Mr. Guarria is a three-time winner of Emerald Group Publishing’s Highly Commended Award and host of The Opinion Guy Fun Friendly Informative. He is available for hire to write, research, or beta-read.
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