Willson Contreras spent his entire MLB career in the Cubs system until he hit free agency and signed a five-year, $87.5 million deal with the rival Cardinals last offseason. The runup to the trade deadline as he was rumored to be moved was emotional last season. The offseason was a bittersweet denouement of the inevitable. It was always going to be dramatic even before Willson lost his catching duties, for now, on the eve of coming back to the Friendly Confines for the first time. There was a lot of speculation about how he’d handle the situation.
He handled it the way he’s handled everything in his playing career — going 2-for-4 with a double, two RBI, a run scored and a moment to remind Cubs fans that he thrives on controversy and your boos just make him stronger [VIDEO].