The St. Louis Cardinals made only one major move during the offseason.
That was the signing of catcher Willson Contreras, who has been given the reins after the retirement of Yadier Molina.
Contreras is also expected to provide an offensive jolt to make up for the loss of Albert Pujols.
Unfortunately, he has struggled at the plate thus far.
The 30-year-old is hitting just .171.
However, he has made some improvements in other areas.
The veteran catcher hasn’t always been the best defender behind home plate.
But on Twitter, Cardinals MLB.com writer John Denton pointed out an area where the 2016 World Series champion has made some vast improvements.
New #STLCards catcher Willson Contreras has struggled at the plate, but he’s improved dramatically defensively. Per Statcast:
Highest avg. catcher arm strength
1. Willson Contreras (STL): 87.4 mph
2. Shea Langeliers (OAK): 87.3 mph ⁰3. Yainer Diaz (HOU): 86.9 mph— John Denton (@JohnDenton555) April 14, 2023
The category Denton is speaking of is average catcher arm strength.
Contreras is at the top of a list of three catchers with the highest average catcher arm strength.
He owns an 87.4 mph mark.
Shea Langeliers of the Oakland Athletics is second on the list and is right behind Contreras with an 87.3 mph mark.
Third on the list is new Houston Astros catcher Yainer Diaz, who has an average of 86.9 mph.
So while Contreras’ bat has been cold as of late, the Cardinals can rest assured that he has made some vital improvements on the defensive end.
The Cardinals are a team that values catcher defense, given that Molina was behind the plate for 19 seasons and won nine Gold Gloves.
While filling the two-time World Series champion’s shoes is no easy task, Contreras has improved drastically on the defensive side, which is certainly an encouraging sign for the Cardinals.
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