The Cardinals are slogging through another underwhelming season, sitting fourth in the NL Central with a 65–67 record. Yes, Monday’s 7-6 win over the Pirates couldn’t have come at a better time, but that’s not what had people talking.

Well, what a blowup this was. If you missed the game, Contreras completely unraveled Monday night after a strikeout against the Pirates. The story began at the bottom of the seventh, with a heated chatter between the slugger and the umpire over a strike call. But then turned into a tantrum that MLB is definitely going to take a closer look at. 

And in a moment, the situation went off the rails. Contreras didn’t exactly tip his helmet and stroll back to the dugout. Instead, he absolutely lost it. First, he spiked his bat, and in the chaos, it actually struck hitting coach Brant Brown. Then, as if that wasn’t enough, he threw bubble gum onto the field, further escalating the situation. So, expectedly, the scene went for a conclusion we all know. Suspension and fines!

“Willson Contreras is appealing his six-game suspension,” Talkin’ Baseball reported.

So, Contreras’s bat toss has officially cost him, at least on paper. Reportedly, MLB hit the Cardinals’ first baseman with a six-game suspension on Aug. 26, just a day after his ejection turned into a full-blown outburst. However, the Cardinals slugger isn’t sitting quietly on the punishment, though. He’s appealing, which means he’s still in the lineup while the league sorts things out.

And if you ask him, he doesn’t even know why he got tossed in the first place. His version?

He was simply chatting with home plate ump Derek Thomas about balls and strikes. “‘I didn’t argue any pitch,’ said Contreras, who agreed he struck out on a pitch that was inside the strike zone. ‘All I said was, ‘Call the pitches on both sides because you’re missing for us.’ Then I turned around. The next thing I hear, he threw me out. There’s no reason for it. Apparently, he heard something [he thought] I said. I did not say that,'” Contreras insisted, via Daily Mail.

But again, not everyone sees it that way. Crew Chief Jordan Baker had another explanation, saying Contreras was ejected for “saying v-lgar stuff” to Thomas.

This is not the first instance of Contreras getting ejected. The Cardinals’ sluggers have a good history, about the same!

The Cardinals’ slugger is no new to dramatic ejections

Back in 2017, when Contreras was still with the Cubs, he got hit with a two-game suspension and a fine from MLB for what they called “inappropriate actions” during a game against his current team Cardinals.

That night, after pitcher John Lackey was tossed in the fifth inning, Contreras slammed his catcher’s mask in frustration. The mask ended up clipping umpire Jordan Baker’s leg, which earned Contreras an ejection of his own!

Fast forward to 2020, and a similar scene played out. Contreras was run from the game after a heated back-and-forth over a check-swing call with umpire Tim Timmons in the fifth inning.

So, the guy’s got a track record of taking the fight straight to the umps, first with the Cubs, now with the Cardinals. But this latest blow-up couldn’t have come at a worse time. He’s been the team’s top bat this season with 19 home runs, and now he’s staring down the possibility of missing six games.