WILLSON’S THE WAY
No one has more influence on where Cubs go from here than multithreat Contreras
You know, it only seemed like the Cubs left half a billion runners on base in Monday’s 3- 1 loss to the White Sox.
In fact, amere dozen Cubs runners were stranded, four of them— including the last two in the bottom of the ninth— by their most clutch hitter, Willson Contreras. The young catcher managed tomake the whole thing look like evenmore of a debacle when he angrily protested homeplate umpire Angel Hernandez’s second strike call and then smashed his bat to pieces after Hernandez had the unmitigated gall to ring up Contreras for strike three.
Earth to Contreras: Take a breath, dude. Both pitches were strikes.
But that’s OK. One must take the bad with the good when it comes to the 2017 Cubs, who, despite being stuck in low gear for most of four months, are right there at the top of the National League Central. And one sure as heck must do likewise when it comes to Contreras, who has been nothing less than the defending World Series champions’ most important player.
Best player? Didn’t say that. No one is better than Kris Bryant. No one has proved more than Anthony Rizzo. But most important? It has been Contreras beyond a doubt. Or maybe you can name a catcher — in all of baseball— these days who puts on the gear more often, plays harder, drops more jaws defensively and does more damage with the bat.
Don’t bother thinking about that one. You can’t.
“I don’t know where we’d be without him,” Bryant said. “I don’t even want to think of it.”
Maybe it’s Contreras’ 15 home runs this season, tops in the league among catchers. Or his 14 goahead RBI and eight game- winning RBI, both Cubs highs.
Thinking back to last fall, it could be his clutch two- run, gametying hit in the eighth inning of Game 4 of the NLDS. Or the way he ( adorable alert) quietly cried tears of glory in the Cubs’ dugout after Ben Zobrist’s go- ahead hit in the 10th inning of Game 7 of the World Series.
Whatever it is, there’s something easy to like about the 25- year- old Contreras. Make that a lot of somethings. The Cubs knew he was a rising force when, four weeks ago, they told veteran backup Miguel Montero not to let the door hit him on the way out.
“It changed everything, to be honest,” Contreras said. “For me, it changed everything because now I’m going to be playing every day and I have nobody looking at me the whole time.”
OK, so there’s no one pining for his job. But there are plenty of
people looking, marveling, at him.
No, it couldn’t hurt if the Cubs went out and got a different veteran to back up Contreras for the stretch run. No catcher can play truly every day. If the Rangers’ Jonathan Lucroy, a two- time All-Star, is available, you have to think about taking a run at him.
But Lucroy isn’t the catcher who’s going to take these Cubs over the top. If anyone does that, it’ll be Contreras, who, more than one Cubs veteran starting pitcher believes, is the guy who’s going to take the baton from the Cardinals’ Yadier Molina and the Giants’ Buster Posey and become a fixture at the Midsummer Classic.
“I definitely see him going a lot,” starting pitcher Jon Lester said, “and the All- Star Game being part of his gig every year.”
Starter John Lackey pitched to all three catching Molina brothers— Bengie and Jose with the Angels and Yadi with the Cardinals— before joining the Cubs last season. Lackey, a demanding sort, had nothing but trust in each of the Molinas. They were smart, intuitive and firm.
“Willson can be that kind of guy, too, for sure,” Lackey said. “He needs to maybe calm down just a bit behind the plate— he can get a little keyed up— but you don’t want to take the kid’s emotion fromhim, because that’s whatmakes him good.
“As far as the All- Star thing, believe me, it’s happening. He’s on his way.”
A Cubs All- Star catcher wouldn’t be a completely groundbreaking concept. Geovany Soto had a turn in 2008, and Joe Girardi in 2000. Jody Davis was a two- timer in the mid- 1980s.
But no Cubs catcher since Hall of Famer Gabby Hartnett in the 1930s has been an All- Star mainstay. Hartnett was honored six times that decade.
Molina is an eight- time All- Star. Posey is a five- timer. There’s a long way to go for Contreras.
“If I ever need a day of rest,” he said, “I’ll take it.”
The less often, the better.