Cardinals' Willson Contreras drops fiery truth bomb after clutch home run

07/06/2024 01:52 PM

The St. Louis Cardinals had an emphatic win over the Washington Nationals Friday night, 7-6, as despite the team being down by five runs at one point, it was Willson Contreras who hit the home run that tied the game up in the ninth inning. He spoke after the game about the emotions he experienced during that exciting event, especially coming off of a lengthy absence from an injury.

WILLSON CONTRERAS TIES IT IN THE 9TH!!! pic.twitter.com/DEX9Rc0Vdc

— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) July 6, 2024

Speaking about Contreras’ injury, he had missed more than six weeks with a fractured left forearm, but is now back in the lineup not as the catcher, but as the designated hitter Friday against the Nationals. As he hit the home run that sailed over the center field wall, he was hyping up his team in the dugout as he was rounding the bases, saying that St. Louis needed “that type of emotion” according to John Denton of MLB.com.

"Everybody here is different, but we need that type of emotion, and I'm not going to ever change," Contreras said. "Energy like that is infectious, and it's good for this team. I love these guys, and they love me. We're here to grind and to win or lose together."

Contreras talks more about the key home run for the Cardinals

The dinger was especially impressive as he hit it off of Nationals reliever Kyle Finnegan who came in with a 0.53 ERA and an .056 batting average at home this season per Denton. Contreras has been aching for that feeling again in that high pressure of a situation as this season, he has hit now eight home runs and 17 runs batted in (RBIs) along with a .265 batting average.

"That's what we play for and that's what makes baseball so exciting because you never know who is going to win," Contreras said talking about the moment he hit the home run in the ninth. "You never know when the big spot is going to come to you, but when you can hit a homer like that, it's really exciting. I'm not going to say I was trying to hit a homer. But I was just trying to get on top of that four-seam fastball because he has a good one."

Cardinals teammate calls Contreras “electric”

There is no doubt that Contreras being back with the Cardinals has given a positive attitude to the rest of the team which was amplified after the monstrous hit. This was show cased by St. Louis slugger Nolan Gorman, who also had a solid game going two for two with two RBIs, as he called the 32-year old catcher “electric.”

"Willson's electric, and we love when he gets fired up like that,” Gorman said after the win over the Nationals. “I think there were more Cardinals fans here than Nationals fans, so he was making sure they were yelling with him. But he's electric, and we love that energy."

Contreras is currently in his ninth season in the majors where the first seven were spent with the Chicago Cubs known as one of the better catchers of the sport. He was a part of the World Series team with the Cubs in 2016 which was historic as it was their first title since 1908 as he also has three All-Star appearances as most recently as 2023.

Contreras talks about the mindset of St. Louis

It was not just Contreras who had an emotional night as the other big storyline was about Cardinals closer Ryan Helsley who blew a save in the tenth inning, ending a streak of converting 31 straight save opportunities. Still, he would redeem himself as after St. Louis regained the lead, he closed the game out and even got the win.

"I kind of laughed about it and said, 'Well my streak is over, so I need to go out here and fight for the win for our team,'" Helsley said. "Our bullpen has been pretty taxed, and I said [to Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol], 'I feel good and I'll take the ball if you'll give it to me.' He told me, 'It's yours,' and thankfully it turned out good for us."

Helsley’s performance and outing Friday night was a microcosm of how the Cardinals handled themselves in the thrilling win over the Nationals. Despite having some adversity thrown at them like being down five runs and even losing the lead late in the game, they never gave up until the game was officially over, which is how Contreras feels about his team.

"We're not giving up until the last out is made, and that's what we showed again tonight," Contreras said via Denton of MLB.com. "To find a way to win this one, it was awesome for us."

The Cardinals are now 46-41 on the season which puts them second in the National League Central behind the Milwaukee Brewers but it is still a tight race after with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds, and Cubs all separated by a game. They look to continue their winning ways against Washington as the second contest in the four-game series is on Saturday at 4:05 p.m. (EST).

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