David Ross loves Willson Contreras' mentality amid his uncertain future with Cubs

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(670 The Score) Cubs catcher Willson Contreras’ future with the organization lingers as one of the biggest questions facing the rebuilding club this season.

Contreras, 30, is in the final year of his contract and headed for free agency next fall if an extension isn’t reached. Lately, there has been no movement on contract discussions, Contreras told reporters. That leads to the next logical development – Contreras is a prime trade candidate should the sides fail to reach a new deal.

And given how well he’s playing, Contreras figures to be one of the most valuable trade chips on the market this summer. He’s hitting .283 with five homers, 14 RBIs and a .906 OPS in 29 games. His also carries a 159 OPS+.

For his part, Cubs manager David Ross hasn’t addressed Contreras’ uncertain future with him. He has simply been impressed by how well Contreras is handling a difficult situation.

“I don’t give advice in those areas,” Ross said on the Laurence Holmes Show on Tuesday. “That would really be outside of my comfort zone and really one of those things that I don’t think – everybody is a grown man, and they’re out having their careers. The things that are important to me that I try to talk about is the daily focus on winning that day, and Willson does a really good job of bringing a good attitude and a focus to win that day and not letting any outside noise affect him. I think he saw and we had some great examples last year that went through that, probably learned a lot from that. And he has a good team around him, good guys around him and a great support staff within his family that’s really important to him, that supports him. We support him in everything he does. I think he loves being a Chicago Cub. I think he loves his teammates and I think he loves winning. Those are the things I value, and I try to continue to stress to everybody. I don’t have to worry about that with Willson. He does a nice job of bringing that mentality every single day.

“The main thing is go out and have fun, play like you’re a kid. Do your homework and enjoy the game. That’s usually when we’re at our best.”

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