The Milwaukee Brewers, catcher William Contreras struck a one-year deal before his arbitration hearing. How has he played with the organization?
The Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday signed catcher William Contreras to a one-year, $9.4 million contract just ahead of an arbitration hearing.
According to MLB insider Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the terms of the contract indicate that Contreras will earn $9.4 million in the 2026 season while a club option worth $14.5 million exists for the 2027 season. Award bonuses are also a part of the deal.
This is a significant deal for the Brewers because, of all the positions on the depth chart, catcher is the thinnest. Heading into the season, Milwaukee only has Contreras and 23-year-old prospect Jeferson Quero, who has yet to make his MLB debut.
Contreras, who is the brother of three-time All-Star, 2016 World Series champion and Boston Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras, arrived in Milwaukee in a three-team deal from the Atlanta Braves in December 2022.
He had a productive first season with the Brewers, logging a slash line of .289/.367/.457 with an .824 OPS and 17 home runs through 141 games.
Defense, however, was not his strong suit. In 108 games behind the plate during the same season, Contreras allowed 77 stolen bases and 11 errors while only catching 16 runners stealing.
In 2024, he saw another boost in production at the plate across multiple metrics. His OPS increased from .824 to .831 and he went from hitting 17 homers to 23.
His numbers behind the plate improved slightly, but still left more to be desired. In 120 games at catcher (119 starts), he decreased the number of stolen bases allowed from 77 to 72 while catching runners attempting to steal 22 times. He also committed three less errors across 1,060 innings.
The 2025 season had an opposite effect. Contreras, while still productive, saw a slight decline at the plate while his presence behind the plate improved. His OPS dipped below .800 and his slugging percentage and on-base percentage also dropped.
However, his 128 starts at catcher and the 1,111.2 innings he logged were the most at the position during his tenure with the Brewers. In that stretch, He only allowed six errors, 60 stolen bases and threw out 22 runners.
It has been a gradual process of improvement for Contreras defensively, but one, nonetheless. Quero is a promising prospect, but it is important that Milwaukee reached a deal with its veteran catcher for the sake of experience.
Contreras will have to get use to some changes to the rotation with the departure of Freddy Peralta and Tobias Myers via trade. But if he can continue to boost his defensive metrics while remaining steady in the batter’s box, then this was the right move for both sides.
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