Cincinnati Reds fans have learned not to trust the baseball gods. Too often, the bad man leaves the division… and then shows up again two years later in a different uniform, still parked in the middle of your schedule like an unskippable ad.

So it’s completely fair if Cincinnati’s first reaction to the Cardinals dealing Willson Contreras to Boston was caution, with fans questioning whether it was actually happening.

Reds get a break as Cardinals move Willson Contreras out of the Central

Yes, it’s all too real. The St. Louis Cardinals traded Contreras to the Boston Red Sox and according to Mark Feinsand of MLB.com, threw in $8 million in reported “cash considerations” to help with the remainder of the deal. The Cardinals received three right-handed pitchers; Hunter Dobbins, Blake Aita and Yhoiker Fajardo.

This type of move doesn’t guarantee the Reds anything, but it does remove one very specific, very annoying problem from the NL Central rotation of misery.

We have acquired RHPs Hunter Dobbins, Blake Aita, and Yhoiker Fajardo from the Boston Red Sox in exchange for 1B Willson Contreras and cash considerations. pic.twitter.com/uDHK4zx9p4

— St. Louis Cardinals (@Cardinals) December 22, 2025

Contreras wasn’t just “a good hitter in the division.” He was the guy who always seemed to pick the most irritating moments to do damage. The stats back up the emotional scarring: a .270 average with 20 homers and 48 RBIs against Cincinnati in 99 career games. 

And here’s the part that made it worse: Reds fans never got the clean “good riddance” moment when the Cubs moved on, because Contreras didn’t leave the neighborhood. He just crossed the street. When he hit free agency, he signed with St. Louis — meaning Cincinnati got to keep seeing him, just with a different shade of red and a different kind of smug. 

Now? He’s someone else’s problem. Enjoy that, AL East. The most interesting part of the trade isn’t just that Contreras is gone — it’s what the Cardinals are signaling.

St. Louis didn’t move him for a “win-now” piece. They moved him for a pitcher with some big-league time (Dobbins) and two younger arms, and they paid money to make it happen. That’s a classic “reset the clock” vibe, especially coming right after the Sonny Gray deal with Boston earlier this offseason. 

This is where Reds fans should allow themselves a little grin: when one of your main division rivals starts converting veterans into younger pitching inventory, it usually means the standings are about to get a little more… negotiable.

That doesn’t mean St. Louis will be harmless. The Cardinals always find a way to be annoying. But if you’re Cincinnati, you’ll take “less proven, more developmental” over “Contreras stepping up with two on, late, again” every single time.

So yeah: happy trails, Willson. And thanks for finally leaving the block.