Willson Contreras' reaction to recurring Brewers trend was completely unjustified

Milwaukee Brewers fans are all too familiar with now-Boston Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras. Not only is he the brother of William Contreras, the Brewers' fan favorite catcher, but for the last 10 years, Willson has been a member of the NL Central, serving as the catcher for both the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals.

Over the course of the past decade, Contreras has logged 118 games against the Brewers, and it's fair to say that those matchups have included their fair share of heated emotions. Contreras' 119th matchup against the Brew Crew last night, with the former Cub and Cardinal now donning a Red Sox jersey following a major offseason trade, was more of the same. As was frequently the case when Contreras was playing for Chicago and St. Louis, tensions rose as a result of his actions.

In the third inning of last night's series opener between the Brewers and Red Sox, Milwaukee's starter, Brandon Woodruff, tried to dot a two-seamer on the upper inside corner of the strikezone on the first pitch of his second at-bat with Contreras. The Red Sox' first baseman struggles with pitches in that area of the strikezone, favoring pitches that are a shade closer to the outer edge of the plate. The fastball got away from Woody, ran up on Contreras' hands, and barely nicked his hand guard. It was such a glancing blow that the Brewers actually challenged whether or not the pitch hit Contreras, and despite uncertainty resulting from the video replay, the call stood.

Though the presence of the hand guard and the fact that the pitch may or may not have actually hit Contreras meant the hit-by-pitch likely didn't inflict much, if any pain, the addition to an ongoing trend was enough to set off the long-time Brewers foe. Throughout his career, Contreras has been plunked by a Brewers pitcher 24 times.

However, while the frequency of hit-by-pitches certainly gives Contreras a reason to be upset, it does not justify his reaction both on the field and in his postgame press conference. What was essentially a harmless hit-by-pitch became a potentially dangerous reaction that should have resulted in consequences for the Red Sox' slugger that never came.

Willson Contreras responds to hit-by-pitch with "spikes-up" slide and a vow to take someone out

After jawing at Woodruff all the way down the first-base line and not stopping once he reached base, Contreras nearly injured Brewers' infielder David Hamilton on a slide into second base when the following batter grounded a would-be double play to second base. Contreras' spikes-up slide, which should have resulted in the runner being called out at first regardless of the outcome of the play, ripped a hole in the shin of Hamilton's pants, as if further proof was needed that the slide was dirty.

If the slide wasn't enough, Contreras' postgame comments add an exclamation point to the unjustified reaction to his third-inning hit-by-pitch. As reported by Tim Healey of the Boston Globe, among others, after the game Contreras said, "They always say, ‘I’m not trying to hit you.’ That gets old. So next time they hit me again, I’m going to take one of them out. That’s a message.”

First of all, Woodruff absolutely was not trying to hit Contreras last night. When the hit-by-pitch occurred, the Red Sox had runners on first and second with nobody out and a one-run lead. Loading the bases with no outs is not something the Brewers do just to send a message to a player they've squabbled with in years past.

However, what's even more worrisome from Contreras' post-game comments is what exactly "take one of them out" means. Presumably, the Red Sox' slugger is threatening to charge the mound the next time a two-seam fastball runs in on his hands or his often-used elbow guard, but the vagueness of the threat makes it all the more unjustified.

The bottom line is that hitters assume a certain amount of risk every time they step into the batter's box. Protective gear, like the elbow and hand guards that Contreras dons, has been created to mitigate that danger. However, the rest of the game of baseball is not meant to hold much danger at all. When a player creates more injury risk, either by sliding into a base with their spikes up or threatening to "take someone out," it needs to be disciplined, or the sport risks this type of behavior becoming accepted. Contreras has every right to be frustrated when he's hit by a pitch, but what followed after the at-bat was completely unjustified.