The Boston Pink Sox have acquired veteran slugger Willson Contreras in a commerce with the St. Louis Cardinals, reviews ESPN. The Cardinals will obtain righty Hunter Dobbins and minor-league pitchers Yhoiker Fajardo and Blake Aita in return, based on The Athletic. That is the second vital Cardinals/Pink Sox commerce this offseason; Boston despatched two younger pitchers to St. Louis for Sonny Grey final month.
Just like Grey, Contreras will obtain a further $1 million in assured cash in change for waiving his no-trade clause, based on the Boston Globe. He’s signed by 2027 with a membership possibility for 2028, and now has $42.5 million coming his method. The Cardinals can pay $8 million of the $42.5 million, reviews MassLive. Whereas Contreras initially confirmed no real interest in leaving St. Louis, even within the face of the continued rebuild, he finally reconsidered and waived it to approve the deal to a Pink Sox membership that, not like the Cardinals, figures to contend in 2026.
Willson Contreras commerce grades: Pink Sox lastly get their huge bat, Cardinals proceed clearing out veterans
R.J. Anderson
The commerce pushes Boston’s payroll into the identical vary as final yr, which means the the Pink Sox will both have to boost payroll or shed a contract(s) to carry again third baseman Alex Bregman.
Contreras, who’s going into his age-34 season, is a former catcher who will possible man first base and DH for the Pink Sox, as he did for the Cardinals in 2025. He provides Boston a wanted middle-of-the-order righty bat and suits Fenway Park nicely given his above-average pulled fly ball price. Contreras is coming off one other productive season:
These 2025 outputs have been good for a 123 OPS+ and a 2.5 WAR in 135 video games. Contreras continues to again up his sturdy offensive manufacturing with equally imposing batted-ball indicators. All of that implies he is more likely to proceed producing at a excessive stage in the intervening time. For his profession, the three-time All-Star has an OPS+ of 118 and a WAR of 29.2 throughout components of 10 MLB seasons. Over that very same span, he is averaged 26 house runs and 31 doubles per 162 video games performed. Defensively, Contreras put up sturdy numbers final season, his first as a main first baseman.
Dobbins, 26, had a 4.13 ERA with 45 strikeouts in 61 innings in 2025, his first season within the majors. A knee damage ended his season in July, although he’s anticipated to be prepared in time for spring coaching. MLB Pipeline ranked Fajardo because the No. 23 prospect in Boston’s system, calling him a “potential mid-rotation starter.” Aita was unranked. He and Fajardo each pitched in Single-A in 2025.
Boston went 87-73 in 2025 and reached the postseason for the primary time since 2021. They have been eradicated by the rival New York Yankees within the Wild Card Sequence.
