Red Sox's Willson Contreras Fumes After Brother Snubbed for NLCS MVP

Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras made his feelings about the National League Championship Series MVP vote crystal clear Thursday night — then quickly tried to take it back.





Willson Contreras of the Boston Red Sox


A Family Feud Ignites After the Pennant


Shortly after the Milwaukee Brewers completed a four-game sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday to win their first pennant since 1982, Contreras took to Instagram to argue that his brother William — Milwaukee's star catcher — deserved the NLCS MVP award over teammate Jake Bauers.


In a series of three now-deleted Instagram stories, Contreras posted a photo of his brother wearing a crown with the caption "THE REAL MVP," followed by a screenshot of William's postseason numbers captioned "Numbers don't lie." A third story carried the pointed line, "Tell me where you are from, and I'll give you the MVP," which many interpreted as an accusation of bias in the voting.


Per reports from EssentiallySports and albat.com, Contreras deleted two of the three stories, but screenshots had already been captured by the Talkin' Baseball account on X before they disappeared.


The Numbers: Did He Have a Point?


Statistically, Contreras' frustration is easy to understand. William Contreras slashed .367/.457/.700 with three home runs and five RBIs across 35 plate appearances this postseason, according to EssentiallySports — numbers that dwarfed Bauers' .269/.441/.423 line with one homer and six RBIs.


But MVP voters rewarded Bauers' timeliness. The journeyman first baseman delivered huge moments in Games 2, 3 and 4, including a rally-starting fourth-inning double in the clincher, when Milwaukee stormed back from a 4-0 deficit to win 6-4 at Dodger Stadium on Oct. 15. Bauers drove in six runs across the four games, finishing with four hits and three walks.



Even the losing side conceded Milwaukee's dominance. "We got outplayed in all facets," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said after the sweep, in comments quoted in a Substack recap of the series.


Jake Bauers of the Milwaukee Brewers, 2026 NLCS MVP



What's Next


The fallout lands awkwardly for the Contreras brothers: William's Brewers are headed to their first World Series in 44 years, where they will face the winner of the Guardians-Rays ALCS while chasing the first championship in franchise history. And with Willson's deleted posts already circulating league-wide, the veteran slugger can expect questions the next time he faces reporters — the story adds a personal edge to what was already a landmark October for Milwaukee.


Location: Boston, MA, USA

Popular posts from this blog

Bruins Rally Past Ducks 4-2: Lindholm, Pastrnak Spark Comeback

Image
The Boston Bruins stormed back from a two-goal first-period deficit to beat the Anaheim Ducks 4-2 on Friday night at Honda Center, scoring four unanswered goals -- three on the power play -- to extend their winning streak to four games and improve to 6-2-0 on the season. Bruins Erase 2-0 Hole in Anaheim The night started badly for Boston. Tim Washe opened the scoring with 37.3 seconds left in the first period, sliding a long wrist shot through a screen and through Michael DiPietro's legs. Just 21 seconds later, Beckett Sennecke finished a slick passing play -- Cutter Gauthier touching it to Nikita Nesterenko, who fed Sennecke for the redirect at the far post -- to make it 2-0. Sennecke's tally was his fifth of the season. Anaheim controlled the opening 20 minutes, but the Ducks went into a shell. They managed only four shots on goal in the third period and were blanked on five power-play chances after entering the night with the league's second-best power play at 33.3 perce...
Read more

Red Sox Trade Rumors: Padres 'Love' Jarren Duran, Says Heyman

Image
Jarren Duran's time in Boston could be running out. MLB insider Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported on the Bleacher Report app this week that if the Red Sox trade Duran this offseason, it will "probably be to the Padres because they love him." The Athletic's Dennis Lin added fuel, reporting that Boston and San Diego have had recent trade discussions centered on the 30-year-old outfielder, per multiple reports. There is no indication a deal is imminent, but the league-wide interest is real: several clubs have reached out to the Red Sox front office about Duran's availability. Why Duran Could Be On The Move The 2026 season was the worst of Duran's career. The former All-Star batted just .207 with a .627 OPS across 151 games, making him one of the least productive qualified hitters in baseball. That is a stunning fall from his 9.0-bWAR breakout campaign in 2024, and his production has now declined two straight years, from 4.9 bWAR in 2025 to 0.4 this season....
Read more

Bruins Chase Fifth Straight Win Tonight Against Winless Kings

Image
The Boston Bruins are red hot, and they get another late night in Los Angeles tonight with a chance to make it five straight wins. The Bruins (6-2-0) visit the Los Angeles Kings (0-3-2) at Crypto.com Arena with puck drop set for 9 p.m. ET on NESN. Boston is riding a four-game winning streak after Friday night's 4-2 comeback over the Anaheim Ducks, where the Bruins trailed 2-0 before scoring four unanswered goals. Tonight is the third stop on a four-game road trip, and the Bruins have won both games so far on the trip. Swayman Returns to the Crease Jeremy Swayman is expected to start in net after Michael DiPietro earned his first NHL win on Friday in Anaheim, per NHL.com. Swayman has been excellent to open the season, going 5-1-0 with a 1.99 goals-against average and a .930 save percentage. Offensively, Boston keeps rolling through captain David Pastrnak. His third goal of the season Friday gave him 423 for his career, passing Brad Marchand for fourth on the Bruins' all-time goa...
Read more