Willson Contreras, lifting the ball in the air like he’s never done before, has become the Red Sox’ primary power source

PHILADELPHIA — When the Red Sox traded for Willson Contreras in December, most viewed the first baseman as a complementary lineup member rather than a centerpiece. Certainly, as a three-time All-Star and World Series winner, he had impressive credentials, but at 33 (he turned 34 in May), it was fair to wonder what form his contributions might take.

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Contreras took note of any questions.

“Before this season, a lot of people doubted myself because I’m 34 – which is normal,” said Contreras. “ ‘He’s getting old. He can’t hit.’ I was like, ‘OK, cool. Let’s see. Let’s wait and see what this season does.’ ”

To date, the 2026 campaign has been a revelation. Despite opponents game planning for him, Contreras has been a force, hitting .285/.379/.542 with 20 homers.

He’s putting up numbers that are either near, at, or on pace for career highs in every major offensive category, earning not just his fourth career All-Star selection but also getting his first invitation to participate in the Home Run Derby. So what’s allowed a breakthrough season in his 11th big league season?

Contreras said nothing has changed in his offensive approach, but opined that he’s more mature in his understanding of the strike zone and approach. Cardinals manager Oli Marmol theorized that Contreras, after three years in St. Louis, has seen his numbers explode by getting out of the power-sapping environment of Busch Stadium. He’s hitting .311/.407/.576 with 10 home runs at Fenway this year. He never hit double figures in homers at Busch Stadium during any of his three seasons with the Cardinals.

“It doesn’t surprise me. He’s a hard worker. He doesn’t take anything for granted. He doesn’t take any at-bats off,” said Marmol, an NL coach in the All-Star Game. “Putting him in that environment there and in that ballpark, it makes a lot of sense to see what he’s doing.”

David Ross, his former teammate and manager with the Cubs, thought that after spending the first nine years of his career as a catcher (a position where his work was often scrutinized heavily for his framing) and the 2025 season working through a transition to first base, Contreras is now settled at a new, less taxing position in a way that has boosted his production and his reputation.

“Now he can focus on hitting a lot more, and he’s turned himself into a really good first baseman,” said Ross. “I think the secret to him coming out and getting more recognition as an amazing hitter, he’s always been able to [hit], but I think in the baseball world we tend to look at what guys don’t do great rather than magnifying what they do well. I think moving him to first has really been the secret to him getting the recognition he deserves.”

But there’s more. Contreras had been renowned for his all-fields power — particularly his ability to drive the ball out to center and right-center. It has been a signature since the first pitch he saw in the big leagues.

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“First at-bat, he hit a changeup out to right-center. I’ll never forget it,” said Ross, recalling Contreras’s homer on the first pitch he ever saw in the big leagues.

“Just an absolute stud when it comes to the big part of the field, having crazy good at-bats, using right-center.”

But in the last two years — and particularly this year — he’s evolved. He’s hitting the ball on the ground less than ever, with a career-low 40 percent ground-ball rate, down from a career 49 percent rate. And just as significantly, he’s started pulling the ball more than ever.

Most of his contact in the air came to center and right field during the first eight years of his career. Last year with the Cardinals, he had a roughly equal distribution of fly balls to all fields. This year, his emergence as one of the best power hitters in baseball coincides with a jump in the frequency with which he’s pulling the ball in the air.

Of the balls he’s put in play, 26 percent have been pulled in the air, almost doubling his career rate of 15 percent. The results have been spectacular: A .690 average, 1.690 slugging mark, and 16 homers on the 59 balls he’s pulled in the air this year.

Did Contreras shift his sights to pull the ball?

“Not really,” he said. “I’ve always been a hitter that, I don’t like to pull the ball, to be honest, because once you start pulling the ball, that’s when the swing comes out of the strike zone real quick, and you start hitting ground balls. My focus is [on pitches] middle, middle-away, to stay on that, and then if they pitch [inside], try to react. But the reality is that I’m not trying to pull the ball.”

Regardless of intention, there’s no denying the outcome: Contreras has been a force, one who has at times carried a Red Sox offense that has lacked another reliable power source.

“It’s crazy,” said his brother, Brewers All-Star catcher William Contreras. “It’s the best year of his life.”

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