Cubs Could Reportedly Move on From Catcher Willson Contreras This Offseason

The Cubs are looking to leave their struggles from recent seasons in the past. They've already moved on from manager Joe Maddon in favor of David Ross, and now they're apparently willing to make a key change to their starting lineup.

According to MLB insider Jeff Passan, Chicago is willing to move on from All-Star catcher Willson Contreras this offseason.

Multiple teams in search of catching help believe Cubs catcher Willson Contreras will be available this winter. The Cubs will get creative this winter, and with a deep catching free agent market, they could trade Contreras and begin retooling under new manager David Ross.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) November 8, 2019

Willson Contreras Contract

Willson Contreras' contract runs through 2020, and he's scheduled to make $4.5 million next season.

Though he struggled with injury during his 2019 campaign, Contreras undoubtedly asserted himself as one of the best catchers in all of baseball. He finished the year with a .368 wOBA, 127 wRC+, 24 home runs, 64 runs batted in and 2.7 fWAR in just 105 games.

That type of offensive production at a premium position will make him a highly-valued commodity for teams looking for help at catcher this offseason.

Leaders in offense for catchers from Fangraphs:

1. Mitch Garver-24.0

*massive gap*

2. Willson Contreras-14.9

The closest AL catcher is Tom Murphy with 10.5, if Garver doesn’t win the AL SS for catchers then the whole system should be shut down.
— Matt Braun (@matthew_btwins) November 7, 2019

Moving Contreras would also help them restock their depleted farm system. They have just two top-100 prospects, one of which is actually a catcher (Miguel Amaya) who could end up taking over behind the dish in the future.

Cubs fans shouldn't be surprised if their favorite catcher is donning a different uniform at the start of next season.