When the St. Louis Cardinals moved Willson Contreras from catcher, it was originally reported that he would spend some time in the outfield. However, the Cardinals have had a change of heart in how they will utilize Contreras moving forward.
Contreras won't play outfield in 2023, via Katie Woo and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. St. Louis president John Mozeliak believes there are better ways to utilize Contreras through the Cardinals' poor start.
“We won't have him in the outfield,” Mozeliak said of Contreras. “I know that came out yesterday, but after talking with him, it's basically going to be more in the DH role right now. And there's light at the end of the tunnel to get back behind the plate.”
“I don't anticipate (Contreras playing in the outfield) unless there's some sort of emergency reason,” Mozeliak continued. “Everything was moving quickly yesterday. A lot of things were getting out there. His hope is he gets a chance to get behind the plate. That's what we're going to work towards.”
The Cardinals moved Contreras off of catcher due to both the backstop and the pitching staff's troubles. St. Louis currently ranks 20th in the MLB with a collective ERA of 4.61. They rank 28th in opponent's batting average (.274) and are tied for 10th-highest with 120 walks allowed.
Willson Contreras just hasn't seemed to mesh with the Cardinals pitching staff. St. Louis will keep his bat in the lineup at DH, but will look to improve their rotation without him behind the plate.
He'll be looking to return back to catcher eventually. But all that is for certain now is that Contreras won't be playing outfield in St. Louis.
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