St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Willson Contreras seemingly suggested that he is not getting enough backing from his teammates after a series of hit-by-pitches.
Contreras was hit by a pitch for the second time in a week during Tuesday’s 1-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. After the game, Contreras voiced some frustration with his team, indicating that he expects to keep getting hit unless Cardinals pitchers start to protect him.
“Every hit by pitch is scary,” Contreras said, via Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “I wish it hit me in a different spot. Every hit by pitch on the hand is really scary. … Probably, it can be bad luck. It can be they’re trying to go in and off the plate. And we’re not protecting anybody, (so) that’s going to keep happening.
“I know they’re not trying to hit me in the hand. I’m a human being. It gets old. I want to play. I want to stay in the game. I don’t know what to say about it. Protect myself, and hopefully somebody protects me.”
The implication from Contreras is that brushing back opposing hitters might lead to him getting hit less. He has been hit 14 times already this season, while the Cardinals as a team have only hit 24 opposing batters.
Contreras’ frustration has been growing in recent weeks as the hits keep piling up. The comment certainly feels like he is directing some of that at his teammates for not sticking up for him.
