‘I push the boundaries’: Willson Contreras isn’t about to apologize for playing with passion and an edge
In order to withstand a 162-game schedule, most baseball players speak of the need to maintain an even keel, to regulate emotional swings in deference to a sport that constantly tests patience.
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Willson Contreras defies that norm.
The Red Sox first baseman plays at a full boil. Every pitch is a test of limits — his own, those of his opponents, those of the game’s rules — and a chance to demonstrate his passion for his profession. That approach has made Contreras a polarizing figure in the sport. He accepts that status.
“To be honest, there’s not a lot of people that like me, and that’s fine,” Contreras said through a translator on Tuesday, hours before he was in the middle of a benches-clearing incident precipitated by a verbal taunt from Nationals starter Cade Cavalli. “There have been a lot of teammates that, when they’re on the other side, they hate me, but when they’re on your side, they love me, because they know what I’m willing to do. I’m willing to do anything to win for them.
Contreras and Cavalli were suspended seven games each by MLB on Thursday for the incident, but are expected to appeal.
“It’s a survival game,” he added. “You have to survive. At the same time you might make people uncomfortable. To survive, you have to make people uncomfortable. That’s how I see it.”
Contreras is unapologetic about playing with passion, an edge, and underlying that, a measure of anger.
The roots of his intensely emotional and competitive playing style, he said, are multifaceted and include: Love of the game; the influence of his parents and family on the need for wholehearted commitment to his profession; and the burning sense of responsibility he felt to succeed in the game in order to provide his family in Venezuela with financial stability, against the backdrop of a country whose economy was in a dire spiral.
“You decide that you have to take the responsibility and the weight of your family,” said Contreras.
Those emotions informed his playing style. So did the slights and blowback he endured from coaches as a minor leaguer in the Cubs system who chastised him for a lack of self-control.
“There are things that you live through in the minor leagues that you don’t get over that easily,” said Contreras. “I had coaches that called me trash, told me to smoke marijuana [to calm down] — things like that. You get over them but you don’t forget.”
Some of the messaging from coaches hardened Contreras’s resolve to compete with unabated intensity. But there were worries about whether his emotions could impact his productivity.
Sox interim bench coach José David Flores, who was a Cubs roving infield instructor from 2013-17, worked with Contreras as he came through the minors. He recalled an incident when Contreras struck out with the bases loaded in Triple-A.
“Same type of player, same type of emotion, but he didn’t know how to control those emotions,” said Flores. “He got to the dugout, and in front of everybody he grabbed his batting gloves, and I swear to God he tore those batting gloves apart into pieces. There were 2-inch pieces of leather all over.”
With experience, Contreras — who is 34 and recently reached 10 years of big league service time — learned more about how to direct his emotions. Self-directed outbursts no longer take place in the dugout. Most of his energy is funneled into competing against his opponents.
“There’s an intimidation factor that he brings that can be good for him and make it harder on the other team. Some guys don’t love confrontation; he doesn’t mind it,” said David Ross, who was teammates with Contreras on the World Series-winning Cubs in 2016 and then managed him in Chicago from 2020-23. “The at-bat, he’s in the fight every time. He’s obviously a passionate guy, emotional guy, but it’s all channeled.
“It’s for his group. He’s fighting for his team. He’s very family-oriented, and it feels like the team is his family that he’s fighting for.”
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Everything Contreras does is purposeful. He leans over the plate to challenge pitchers to try to beat him inside. If a pitcher does go up and in, he’ll often move closer to the plate as a dare.
“I push the boundaries,” said Contreras. “It challenges the pitcher to throw strikes. When I challenge the pitcher to throw strikes, that also shows my team and my teammates that I’m willing to do anything to get on base, and that motivates my teammates.”
Everyone on the field feels the ripples of what Contreras does, which is why he inspires such different reactions from teammates and opponents.
In his first year with the Red Sox following an offseason trade from the Cardinals, Contreras has been in several dustups — most recently, throwing his helmet at Cavalli. Opponents express little love for him.
“We’ve seen that skit for the last 10 years,” Brewers star Christian Yelich said after Contreras got into shouting matches with Milwaukee players after being hit by a pitch.
“Sometimes, it’s just too much,” Twins catcher Victor Caratini, who considers Contreras a close friend and beloved former teammate, said via translator. “The intensity goes a little bit too far.”
“Ridiculous,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said of Contreras causing benches to empty after pitcher Will Warren threw an up-and-in pitch one at-bat after the slugger had homered.
Red Sox teammates, including those who disliked playing against Contreras in the past, have another view. They’ve come to revel in his ferocious competitiveness and the willingness to play mind games to disrupt opponents.
“Whenever he’s at the plate, just having him on the other team, you’re a little bit more on edge,” said Sox third baseman Caleb Durbin, who recalled an incident last year when Contreras, then with the Cardinals, leaned back receiving a throw at first to initiate a collision at first base that left Durbin, then with the Brewers, on the ground. “He’s not afraid to shake things up, obviously. You hate playing against him, but you love when he’s on your team, because you feed off that energy.”
“It’s not an act. It’s not something that is forced. That’s the way he lives, and that’s the way he plays his game,” said Sox shortstop Trevor Story. “He’s fighting tooth and nail for every single pitch. It’s incredible to watch.”
For a relatively young and inexperienced roster, the Sox see Contreras as a tone-setter — someone whose ferocious desire to win needs to be emulated.
Members of the team suggested they fed off the incredible emotion with which Contreras played during the recent homestand, as he navigated not only the desire to propel his team back into contention but also while navigating heartbreak in the wake of the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela following the devastating earthquakes.
“He’s our leader in here, and everyone loves playing with him,” said Durbin. “We obviously need him, and he’s a big part of the identity of this team.”
For Contreras, there is a sense of comfort in the Red Sox. More than at any prior point in the big leagues, he feels like his playing personality has been embraced, contributing to the best offensive performance of his career (.283/.377/.529, with 18 HRs).
“I do feel a lot of responsibility in a good way, and I’m not hiding from that responsibility to be a leader,” said Contreras. “I appreciate this organization just letting me play the way that I play, and also accepting the way that I play.”
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