Two days ahead of Major League Baseball鈥檚 trade deadline, Cardinals first baseman Willson Contreras echoed the same desire that kept him unavailable from trade talks over this past offseason.
鈥淚鈥檓 going to stay here. I鈥檓 not going nowhere,鈥 Contreras said on Tuesday while standing in front of his locker inside the Cardinals clubhouse.
Contreras, who signed a five-year, $87.5 million contract with the Cardinals ahead of the 2023 season, has a no-trade clause in his contract and made his intentions clear over the winter that he preferred to remain with the Cardinals despite the club鈥檚 intentions to go through a 鈥渞eset鈥 amid a transition in the front office.
A conversation earlier this week with Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak allowed him to express his desires had not changed.
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The Cardinals鈥 Willson Contreras tosses his arm guard after drawing a walk against the Padres on Saturday, July 26, 2025, at Busch Stadium.
鈥淚鈥檓 good here. I already talked to (Mozeliak) earlier this week, and everything is still the same,鈥 Contreras said. 鈥淟ike I said, it鈥檚 a business, and he doesn鈥檛 seem like he wants to trade me. He said no. I said no. We鈥檙e good.鈥
The three-time All-Star and World Series winner in 2016 during his time with the Cubs, the latter being a factor in his comfort to remain a Cardinal during the club鈥檚 transition, said he wants 鈥渢o do my best here鈥 and feels he hasn鈥檛 鈥渄one enough for me to leave the city, yet.鈥
He entered this season a full-time first baseman after nine seasons as primarily as a catcher, a move that cleared catching opportunities to be shared by youngsters Ivan Herrera and Pedro Pages, and has been a veteran leader in the Cardinals鈥 clubhouse.
鈥淗e鈥檚 passionate about being in 最新杏吧原创 and being a part of what we鈥檙e doing,鈥 Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said of Contreras. 鈥淗e likes what鈥檚 going on and where we鈥檙e headed and wants to make sure that he can continue to be himself and bring value to this whole thing, which I鈥檓 super appreciative of, because I like having him around. I love that guy.鈥
Contreras鈥 comments on remaining a Cardinal came as his team entered Tuesday 3.5 games behind the Padres for the third NL Wild Card spot and with his club nearing a trade deadline where they could be active in dealing relievers. Closer Ryan Helsley, setup man Phil Maton, and lefty Steven Matz are all on expiring contracts and are arms that could draw interest from other contending teams.
When he met with reporters on Tuesday, Contreras said it would be 鈥渞eally hard to ignore the noise of the trade deadline,鈥 which he once went through before as a candidate to be moved in 2022 while with the Cubs.
As this year鈥檚 deadline nears, he鈥檒l look try to silence what goes on around him.
鈥淲e鈥檒l see what鈥檚 going to happen until the last day, but as of right now, I鈥檓 not thinking of any of that,鈥 Contreras said.
Remembering baseball great Sandberg
For Cardinals hitting coach Brant Brown, the time as a teammate of late Hall of Famer Ryne Sandberg brings back more than the memories of the bond he shared with one of Sandberg鈥檚 kids and the impact a foul ball that clipped Sandberg鈥檚 ear had, but also of the 10-time All-Star second baseman鈥檚 personality.
鈥淗e loved to joke around. He was a prankster, believe it or not, because he was so serious on the field, no emotion, just a steady Eddie,鈥 Brown said on Tuesday to Post-Dispatch columnist Benjamin Hochman.
Sandberg, a Hall of Fame inductee in 2005, died on Monday at the age of 65.
It was announced in January 2024 that Sandberg had been diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer. He said in August 2024 he was cancer-free but revealed in December the cancer had returned and had spread to other organs.
The multi-time All-Star won nine Gold Gloves, seven Silver Slugger awards, and was the National League鈥檚 MVP in 1984.
A teammate of Sandberg鈥檚 in 1996 and in 1997, Brown recalled fouling a slider off from Tom Glavine during a game at Wrigley Field in 1997 that went into the Cubs鈥 dugout and through the 鈥渉alf-net part that wasn鈥檛 covered.鈥 Brown鈥檚 foul ball caught Sandberg鈥檚 ear and cut it, leading to a changed field setup the next day with extended netting.
鈥淭hose are my fondest memories, just all the fun times and the memories that I had when I played with him (Sandberg),鈥 Brown told Hochman. 鈥淚 couldn鈥檛 be more fortunate to have played with him. All of my condolences to his family.鈥
Extra bases
Brendan Donovan鈥檚 absence from Tuesday鈥檚 starting lineup against the Marlins was a scheduled day off for the All-Star second baseman, Marmol said.
- After serving as designated hitter for Class AA Springfield (Missouri) on Tuesday to begin his rehab assignment, Nolan Gorman (lower back pain) is expected to make a rehab start at second base for Springfield on Wednesday.
- Lars Nootbaar (left costochondral sprain) went through pregame workouts with the Cardinals on Tuesday before heading to Springfield, Missouri, to begin a rehab assignment on Wednesday with the Cardinals鈥 Class AA affiliate.
