CHICAGO — During a lengthy conversation Friday with incoming president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom, Willson Contreras expressed a wish to remain with the Cardinals through whatever comes next for the team.
“He’s going to do the best he can to … create a better farm system,” Contreras said. “I understand his point. I understand the path he’s going to take. I just told him, I would like to be part of the process.
“I would like to be part of the process,” Contreras said. “Because I would like to be a part of the young team that is going to need to have some kind of experience around them. That is what I express.”
Contreras shared his thoughts about his future Saturday afternoon in the visitors’ dugout at Wrigley Field.
He has a full no-trade clause and can dictate where he’s willing to go.
He shared that he understands “the business” and that he and Bloom agreed to remain on contact through the winter. If the Cardinals are approached about a trade that makes sense for them, Contreras said he would be willing to listen and hear if it also makes sense for him.
But he repeatedly said his preference is to remain with the Cardinals.
Contreras, 33, has two years remaining on the five-year contract he signed with the Cardinals to be the heir at catcher to Yadier Molina. An All-Star, Contreras agreed to move to first base this season to clear way for younger players at catcher and possibly increase his durability, playing time, and the longevity of his career by getting out from behind the mask and away from the bruising profession of catching.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
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Derrick Goold | Post-Dispatch
Lead baseball writer
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