Willson Contreras recorded two hits, scored one run, and ticked all the boxes in his return to the Boston Red Sox. Yet, part of the focus remains on his strange at-bat for the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs the day before. Frustrated by the umpire’s denial, the Red Sox star botched his at-bat and threw his bat during his final minor league rehab start. Following his return to the big leagues, Contreras gave a simple explanation for what went down on Saturday.
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“I don’t know. You can go ask the umpire. His name is Gary,” Contreras told the reporters, per Tyler Milliken on X.
After the Red Sox placed Contreras on the 10-day IL with a left hamstring strain, the 1B was rehabbing with the Double-A team. During a fourth-inning at-bat against the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, Contreras wanted to apply more pine tar to his bat. He tried to step out of the batter’s box to do it, but the home plate umpire, Daniel Bytheway (not Gary, as Contreras quipped), took exception. He did not allow Contreras to leave and asked the Ponies’ pitcher, Gabe Davis, to continue throwing.
Contreras and his temper are not ones to go down without a protest. He stood inactive at home plate, letting the pitch count reach three strikes in six pitches. Once he was struck out looking, a frustrated Contreras threw his bat at home plate before going inside the dugout.
MLB allows batters to use pine tar to improve grip, as it helps to prevent the bat from slipping. However, they must not apply the substance more than 18 inches from the bat handle. While umpires can check a bat at any time during the game, Bytheway neither checked nor confiscated Contreras’ bat. So what prompted the umpire to stop Contreras remains unclear.
As for Contreras’ conduct during the at-bat, some fans speculated that he did not want to risk further injury with a bad grip. After he struck out, Contreras exchanged a few words with the umpire on his way to the dugout. His teammate Brooks Bannon picked up the bat and handed it over to another.
Contreras had a bat-throwing episode in August last year as well. Home plate umpire Derek Thomas ejected Contreras, who was still playing for the St. Louis Cardinals, over a ball-and-strike call argument. Following a called third strike, Contreras lost his cool and threw his bat. It accidentally struck Cardinals hitting coach Brant Brown in the face. The 1B also threw a bucket of candies/gums onto the field.
Coming back to Sunday, manager Chad Tracy was asked about the minor league stunt Contreras pulled.
“I didn’t even know until somebody showed it to me this [Sunday] morning,” Tracy said before the game, per The Boston Globe. “I haven’t even seen him and asked him that yet. I think that’s something to do with pine tar.”
Contreras’ return to the Red Sox’s active roster meant Tracy had to figure out which player to option to create an open spot. However, Anthony Seigler has made the job easier.
Anthony Seigler lands on the IL
The Red Sox acquired Seigler along with Caleb Durbin, Andruw Monasterio, and a Competitive Balance Round B draft pick in exchange for Kyle Harrison, Shane Drohan, and David Hamilton in the offseason. Knee issues caused Seigler to shuffle back-and-forth between the Red Sox and Triple-A.
The Red Sox recalled him from Triple-A on Friday. However, his big-league stint with the Red Sox did not last, as the team placed him on the 10-day IL. Seigler injured his right wrist while taking a swing during the fourth inning against the Kansas City Royals. The 27-year-old was hitting .247 with 3 homers and 13 RBIs in 49 games this season.
With Seigler out, the Red Sox easily reinstated Contreras. On Sunday, the Red Sox 1B appeared dominant on his return to the lineup. The hamstring that gave him trouble during baserunning appeared to have healed. Fans even booed him earlier in the season for not running fast enough on ground balls. Contreras tested his newly fixed hamstring by running to first base and advancing to second on an error, moving from first to third on a single.
“I ran a lot today on the field, and my hammy feels pretty good,” Contreras said, per The Boston Globe. “I won’t lie: If I wasn’t feeling really good in [Double-A] Portland, I wasn’t going to play tonight.”
With Contreras back in the lineup and looking healthy, the Red Sox have one less thing to worry about in their postseason run.