FORT MYERS, Fla. — When the Boston Red Sox traded for first baseman Willson Contreras, they did so to add more power.
The fact that he finished last year as one of the league’s best defensive first basemen didn’t hurt either.
Contreras, who spent the first nine years of his career primarily as a catcher with the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals, transitioned to first base last season and excelled. Over 120 games at first, he posted 6 Outs Above Average, the fourth-best mark at the position.
Strengthening the infield defense has been a longstanding priority for the Red Sox. Their infield posted minus-21 Outs Above Average last season, and the Red Sox had 116 errors as a team, the most in the majors, after committing the second-most errors in MLB the previous two seasons.
The addition of Contreras, alongside a healthy Trevor Story at shortstop and two strong defensive infielders in Caleb Durbin and Marcelo Mayer at the other two infield spots, will be key to solving the team’s defensive difficulties.
Contreras put in a lot of work with Cardinals field coordinator Stubby Clapp when he made the transition to first base last spring, but he also took advice from one of the best defensive players in the history of the game: Ozzie Smith.
Ozzie Smith threw the ceremonial first pitch on Opening Day at Busch Stadium last season. (Joe Puetz / Getty Images)
Smith, a Hall of Famer who played 15 seasons for St. Louis, visited Cardinals camp last spring and offered some insight to the new infielder.
“He showed up a couple of times during my workouts and explained some of the angles, some other stuff and I asked him a lot of questions, and that helped a lot,” Contreras said.
“He’s amazing, a 13-time Gold Glove winner, you need to listen. If you don’t listen to that guy, you’re playing the wrong sport.”
Contreras said Smith’s advice on footwork helped him the most.
“He said stay in your feet, don’t stay flat-footed,” he recalled. “Stay ready and ask any question. I said, ‘Tell me anything you want me to do, I’ll do it.’ His advice, it was really helpful.”
Over the course of the season, Contreras continued to feel more comfortable. Though a longtime catcher, the 33-year-old played third base when he first signed with the Cubs in 2009. The infield instincts likely have helped him at first.
“I think just from being willing to listen, to ask any questions, listen to people that played there before, there’s no stupid question for me,” Contreras said of how he got so good at the spot so quickly.
Manager Alex Cora, a former big-league infielder, said in early drills he’s noticed how easily Contreras fields the spot with soft hands and a steady presence.
“He’s a good athlete, he moves well,” Cora said. “They did a good job with him last year (in St. Louis).”
Contreras will see most of his time at first base, especially as Triston Casas continues his rehab from a ruptured patellar tendon. How the Red Sox configure playing time when Casas returns, which is expected to be sometime in May, remains a question. Contreras figures to get some time at designated hitter, but with no other true first basemen on the 40-man roster outside of utilitymen Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Romy Gonzalez and Nick Sogard, he’ll spend most of his time at first for the foreseeable future. Contreras did say he could catch in an emergency, but he’ll leave the main catching duties to Carlos Narváez and Connor Wong.
Without adding any other power hitters this offseason, Boston’s lineup will rely heavily on Contreras, who hit .257 with 31 doubles, 20 homers and a .791 OPS last season in 135 games. The Red Sox feel his pull-side power will play well against the Green Monster.
“I think similar to what Alex (Bregman) brought last year, offensively, very similar,” Cora said. “This guy is going to hit the ball hard. It’s a quality at-bat. It’s a righty that we needed. He had a good season last year.”
Cora plans to hit Contreras in the cleanup spot, likely with Wilyer Abreu behind him. Cora has yet to announce the rest of his lineup, but some combination of Trevor Story, Roman Anthony and Jarren Duran is expected to fill out the top of the order.
“I think the most important thing for me is just having good at-bats,” Contreras said. “It doesn’t matter where I hit in the lineup. I think we have a really good team from one through nine, who can back each other up, and hitting in the cleanup spot is good. I think it’s fun. And I’m looking forward to it.”
Contreras arrived at Red Sox camp a few days before the official report date, in part because he expects to play for Team Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic at the end of February. He is still waiting to be cleared by the insurance company to play for Venezuela, but is hoping to get the official word soon. He’ll be one of 12 Red Sox players on the 40-man roster expected to depart for the WBC in the coming weeks. Roman Anthony is among them, but as of Saturday he was still waiting to be cleared physically.
Early in camp, Contreras has been energized by a young Red Sox club.
“We have a really good group,” he said. “Good hitters from one to nine. We have a lot of young guys, young talent here, and I’m going to do my best to be there for them.”
