The backstops
Life is coming at Willson Contreras fast.
The 24-year-old catcher muscled his way onto the Cubs roster through force of will and abundant talent. His bat — 11 home runs in 71 games — made it too hard to keep him idling at Triple-A Iowa for the second half of the season.
It has been a whirlwind for Contreras, who has spent his first months in the major leagues adjusting to new teammates and a new home in Chicago. But try doing that when a portion of your mind is elsewhere — all the time.
Specifically, Contreras is thinking about his parents, Olga and William, who live a continent away in his native Venezuela, and the danger they face from money-grabbing criminals who might want to target the parents of a baseball player.
“In Venezuela, there's nowhere where you know you're going to be safe,” Contreras said. “Like, flip a coin.”
Contreras trudges on, doing all he can to keep his parents secure while his family works to obtain them a visa to come live in the United States. In the meantime, Contreras has found a little bit of Venezuela here in Chicago to smooth his transition.
“That's the one thing my parents wanted me to do, to play baseball and be the best that I can be,” said Contreras, who has worked hard at learning English since coming to the U.S. for the first time in 2010. “So the best gift that I can give them is just to stay focused and play as hard as I can. Once I get them here, it's going to be a lot of fun for me.”
Contreras had hoped to get his family a temporary visa so they could come watch the playoffs at Wrigley Field. But he said last week it didn't appear that would happen. For now, his parents will watch from a new home Contreras helped purchase for them.
In Chicago, Contreras lives in Lincoln Park, and walking along the beaches of Lake Michigan takes him back home for a few moments. His favorite destination is Navy Pier.
Then there's Contreras' favorite Venezuelan restaurant, Bienmesabe on Montrose Avenue. It's a destination for Venezuelan-born major-leaguers when they play here. There, Contreras can have all the ground beef, beans and plantains he craves.
But his biggest pillar of support is his fiancee, Astrid, who lives with him. In that way, Contreras has a little bit of family so far from home.
“She's helping me a lot, keeping me focused on baseball,” Contreras said. “When I have a bad day, she's always there. She's giving me support.”
As Miguel Montero's production and playing time diminished this season, the 33-year-old catcher believed his tenure with the Cubs was coming to an end.
So in an effort to salvage what was a miserable five months, Montero started to look at video of a player set to retire after this season — Red Sox slugger David Ortiz.
“It's not that I wanted to hit like him,” Montero said. “I wanted to see how he got going because he's got the leg kick when he gets started. I was watching in slow motion and told myself I'm going to practice this in the batting cage.”
The left-handed-hitting Montero admitted incorporating Ortiz's leg kick felt uncomfortable. But, with a .199 batting average, Montero had nothing to lose.
So after three rounds of batting practice, Montero felt ready to try the new stance and leg kick in a simulated game against Hector Rondon on Sept. 4.
“And I felt pretty good,” said Montero, who played nine seasons with the Diamondbacks before joining the Cubs in 2015. “I saw the ball well, I recognized his pitches. I put a couple good swings on him. And it was the turning point this year. I felt good with my timing. It actually was there.”
The timing couldn't be any better for Montero and the Cubs as they prepare for the playoffs. Montero has batted .355 (11-for-31) with three doubles and two home runs since adopting the new approach, and the Cubs now have a productive left-handed-hitting catcher to combat tough right-handers.
“I know I'm better than how I started the season,” Montero said. “I know that. But sometimes it's hard to get back into it. I feel great and I'll keep on working and let's see what happens.”
Montero's troubles started with bulging disks in his lower back that landed him on the 15-day disabled list for three weeks early in the season.
His struggles at the plate, coupled with the instant production from rookie Willson Contreras from late June through the All-Star break, raised uncertainty about whether Montero would be able to make a substantial contribution.
But looking back, Montero believes the lack of playing time might have allowed him to preserve some strength.
“It's a long season, regardless of whether you're playing or not,” Montero said. “It gets a little tiring, but my body feels good. I feel fresh.
“I don't know how I would have felt now had I played every day. Your mind controls your body. If you don't think about being tired, you're OK.”
PREVIOUS ARTICLE
