The Milwaukee Brewers sure are glad that four years ago, the Atlanta Braves really wanted catcher Sean Murphy.
Because the Braves needed to send out a catcher in a three-team trade in order to get Murphy from the A’s — and that catcher was William Contreras.
The Brewers got involved in that deal back then and have since watched Contreras turn into one of the best catchers in the sport.
And now, the Contreras-led Brewers are going to the World Series.
On Thursday night, they completed their sweep of the back-to-back world champion Los Angeles Dodgers.
Contreras has been a huge piece of the entire playoff run, and really of the Brewers’ rise to prominence in the last few seasons.
Atlanta could’ve kept him, but they wanted Murphy, and so the Brewers are still playing, and the Braves are at home.
Braves Lost William Contreras for Sean Murphy
Contreras signed the minor league ladder with the Braves, who had originally signed him as a teenager out of Venezuela.
He made it up for four games during the 2020 season, going 4-for-10 with a double.
Then in 2021, he played in 52 games and batted .215 with a .399 OPS and eight home runs.
He broke out in 2022 in 97 games with 14 doubles, 20 homers, a .278 average and an .860 OPS.
After that year, though, the Braves traded Contreras away.
They were involved in a three-team deal with the Brewers and the Oakland Athletics.
The Braves did the trade to end up with Murphy from the A’s. The only other players of note, in retrospect, were speedster Esteury Ruiz going to Oakland and reliever Joel Payamps going to Milwaukee.
Murphy was a strong player at first for Atlanta, but it turns out that having Contreras would’ve worked out so much better.
William Contreras Stats With Brewers
This was the end of Contreras’ fourth full season with Milwaukee. He has made the All-Star Game twice for the Brewers.
Over his four years, he has played in 593 regular season games and batted .275 with a .792 OPS that includes 130 doubles, four triples and 75 home runs.
Contreras has three home runs in this postseason so far for Milwaukee.
That sure would’ve looked good in a Braves uniform instead — but Atlanta didn’t have him and was eliminated by the Dodgers in the NLDS.
Now, the Brewers will try to win the World Series for the city that used to feature the Braves. They’ll do it with a catcher who first showed his promise in a Braves uniform but now looks right at home with Brewers on his chest.
Braves’ Sean Murphy Trade Helped Brewers Reach World Series