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Willson Contreras’ five-year, $87.5MM contract with the Cardinals included a full no-trade clause for the first four seasons, and Contreras indicated after last season that he wasn’t willing to consent to a deal. The first baseman has slightly changed his stance now, telling reporters (including MLB.com’s Jeff Jones) that still wants to remain in St. Louis, but is willing to consider waiving his no-trade protection.
“If something comes up to [president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom] that makes a lot of sense for him and the organization, and it makes sense for me and my future, how about we talk about that?” Contreras said. “But as of right now, I would just like to be part of the [rebuilding] process.”
Contreras noted that he isn’t requesting a trade, and already shared his thoughts about staying with the club in a meeting with Bloom on Friday. “I’d like to be a part of a young team that needs to have some kind of experience around them. That’s what I expressed, but I understand the part of the business of the team, and we just came to an agreement there,” the first baseman said.
We’ve already seen Sonny Gray and Nolan Arenado each indicate that they’d be more open to waiving their own no-trade protection this winter, in the wake of the incoming Cardinals rebuild. Gray is under contract just through the 2026 season but at the hefty price tag of $40MM ($35MM in backloaded salary and at least $5MM in a buyout of a club option for 2027). Arenado is owed $42MM through the 2027 season, though that number is reduced by deferred money and $5MM from the Rockies as per the terms of the trade that sent Arenado from Colorado to St. Louis.
Contreras is just finishing the third season of his five-year deal, and he is owed $41.5MM in remaining salary — $18MM in 2026, $18.5MM in 2027, and there is a $5MM buyout of a $17.5MM club option for 2028. Of these three pricey St. Louis veterans, Contreras brings less of a one-off luxury tax hit than Gray, and he has been a much more effective hitter than Arenado over the last three seasons.
A right shoulder strain ended Contreras’ 2025 season earlier in September, so his season numbers stand at 20 homers and a .257/.344/.447 slash line across 563 plate appearances. Contreras’ time with the Cardinals has been largely defined by the team’s downturn in performance and the defensive questions that led to his move from catcher to first base, but the veteran has continued to hit — he has batted .261/.358/.459 over 1416 PA in a Cardinals uniform, which translates to a 129 wRC+.
Those numbers play better from the catcher position than at first base, so hypothetically, a trade suitor might have interest in shifting Contreras back into at least a part-time role behind the plate. Given the lack of catching depth around the league, a team might also have more interest in taking on more of Contreras’ salary if he is being deployed to fill a larger hole at catcher than at first base.
As Jones observes, trading Contreras would allow the Cardinals to find more playing time for multiple players on the roster. Alec Burleson would likely take over most of the time at first base, which in turns opens up at-bats at DH and in the outfield for others.
That said, Contreras ultimately has the final word due to his contract. His full no-trade protection only lasts through 2026, as Contreras can then submit a no-trade list of 10 teams. The Cardinals could conceivably stick with Contreras through the coming season and then perhaps look more seriously at trade talks next winter, when the team will have slightly more freedom in working out a deal with at least 19 teams.
Even if Contreras has left the door slightly ajar to a trade, he made it clear that he is happy in St. Louis and would embrace the idea of helping mentor a new generation of Cardinals.
“I understand that it might take three to five years to have a playoff team or a team that can contend to the World Series, and I said even if I don’t make it there, and you guys make it to a World Series, I feel like I can be proud of that, just because I want to help young guys to better develop and have a better idea of what baseball is besides going to analyze stats,” Contreras said.
