Fiery Feud Reignites Between Willson Contreras, Brewers
Willson Contreras spent a lot of time with the St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs, so he does not like the Milwaukee Brewers. Even now, as a member of the Boston Red Sox, those feelings have not gone away. After another hit-by-pitch, the feud is officially reignited.
Willson Contreras voices displeasure with Brewers
Throughout his lengthy MLB career, Willson Contreras has been hit by 131 pitches. Of those, 24 were delivered by a member of the Brewers, 10 more than any other team. This makes some sense given that he's played the Brewers the most of any opponent: 121 times. Spending time as a divisional rival will do that.
However, Contreras is not happy about it."They always say, 'I'm not trying to hit you,''' Contreras said. "That gets old. So, next time they hit me again, I'm going to take one of them out. That's a message." The Brewers beat the struggling Red Sox, dropping them to 2-8.
After getting hit, Contreras hollered at Woodruff from first base. On a force play at second, the Red Sox star made a hard slide into second, knocking Brewers shortstop David Hamilton's left knee with his cleats and ripping his pants.
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Brandon Woodruff is unfazed
Despite hitting Willson Contreras and sparking a mini-scuffle between the two sides (or at least angering Contreras again), Brewers pitcher Brandon Woodruff isn't worried. He doesn't feel that they've had a target on Contreras' back at all.
"I mean, we've been through that. It's been like nine years for me. It seems like every year," Woodruff said. "He's trying to play a game, and he's trying to get his side fired up, which is fine. Once I knew what was going on, I wasn't going to let it affect me."
Christian Yelich isn't fazed, either. "I mean, we've seen that skit for the last 10 years," the Brewers outfielder said. "It's nothing new." Both he and Woodruff are longtime Brewers, so they've seen Contreras a few times over the years.
Fortunately, nothing really spilled over. There was no fight, even after it seemed as if Contreras slid into and spiked Hamilton. Nevertheless, if the Brewers hit Contreras again in one of the next couple of games, things could get out of hand. A mound-charging and bench-clearing would not be surprising.
More controversy
The pitch only appeared to barely graze Willson Contreras on its way to his brother, William, behind the plate. It was so inconsequential that manager Pat Murphy challenged it. Generally, if pitchers are hitting batters on purpose, it's not left to interpretation like that.
"I thought it wasn't a hit by pitch," Murphy said. "That's why we challenged it. Those are really hard to get overturned." Ultimately, the review did validate Contreras, but it still doesn't mean Woodruff tried to throw at him. If he had, he'd have likely planted one squarely in the Red Sox star's back.
When Contreras was on his way to first, his brother did admit that he tried to calm him down. Obviously, it didn't work, as the younger Contreras said his older brother just "plays that way." Contreras has always been a fiery player, as the Brewers undoubtedly know.
Contreras did go deep on Monday, potentially breaking out of a slump. He and other Boston newcomers have struggled. He's still hitting .235, but the home run doubled his season tally and might spark something. It still wasn't enough to get the Red Sox out of the hole. Three runs in the eighth and ninth innings were enough for the Brewers to get the win.
It pushed them to 8-2, one of the best starts in the MLB. The Red Sox are off to one of the worst starts in the MLB.
