Willson Contreras Won't Play OF, Will Be Used as DH, Cardinals President Says

The St. Louis Cardinals reportedly were exploring the possibility of using catcher Willson Contreras in the outfield, but that no longer appears to be the case.

According to The Athletic's Katie Woo and Ken Rosenthal, Cardinals president of baseball operations John Mozeliak said Contreras has been moved to the designated hitter spot and he will not be playing in the outfield.

"I don't anticipate [Contreras in the outfield] unless there's some sort of emergency reason," Mozeliak said. "Everything was moving quickly yesterday. A lot of things were getting out there. His hope is he gets a chance to get behind the plate. That's what we're going to work toward."

In the midst of an eight-game losing streak, the Cardinals (10-24) are hoping the change behind the plate allows Contreras to stay locked in offensively while trying to get more comfortable with his new pitching staff. The 30-year-old signed a five-year, $87.5 million contract with St. Louis after he spent the first seven seasons of his career with the rival Chicago Cubs.

"There are ways to make sure [Contreras'] bat is in the lineup while we execute our plan internally," Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said, noting the outfield was considered one of those ways. "How long is that going to take? That I don't have an answer for. But there's a plan that we feel good about to make sure we get him to where he's comfortable and our pitchers are comfortable in executing."

The Cardinals pitching staff ranks 21st in MLB with a 4.70 ERA. Contreras reportedly approached the team himself after Saturday's 6-5 loss to the Detroit Tigers and "understood that his role, for now, will be as the team's primary designated hitter" while still expressing a desire to return to catching at some point.

St. Louis was fortunate to have future Hall of Famer Yadier Molina behind the plate for the last two decades, so it's understandable that it would take time for the team to adjust to a new face. The advent of the pitching clock also added a new wrinkle that Cardinals pitchers have struggled getting used to.

Still, the team isn't ready to give up on Contreras.

"With this, we've noticed a lot of puzzling trends we know we need to fix. We know we need to address it. ... We just decided to do it head on, put it out there," Mozeliak said. "Do we think we've seen Willson catch his last game? No. But this is going to take a little time to get him to where we feel he understands the expectations of what this role is for us."