Twins Spotlight: OF Mark Contreras

Anytime a minor-league manager calls a player into his office, that player has to feel some level of anxiety and his mind is certainly running all over the place. On a Monday in early May, Mark Contreras saw his phone ringing, and “Gardenhire, Toby” appeared on the screen. The outfielder answered and the manager asked where he was. 

Contreras said, “I’m in the clubhouse.” 

Toby Gardenhire, “Come to my office.” 

It was a short walk, but the Saints manager told him, “Hey, you’re not going with us on this road trip.”

That’s not what a player wants to hear. Contreras ran through many scenarios in his mind. What did he do wrong? What’s going on?

The manager told him that he couldn’t say that he was going to get called up, but a lot was going on with the Twins and there was a lot of uncertainty. He might be called up. Or, the Twins may not need to make a transaction and he would then head to Columbus to join the Saints. He was told that he should be expecting a call that night telling him what was going on. 

Late that night, he finally got a call from Alex Hassan, the Twins' Director of Player Development (until his promotion last week). What was he going to hear? 

Hassan told him that they still didn’t know what would happen for sure, but that he should get some sleep and as soon as they knew what was going on, he would be the first to hear. Don’t stay up and wait. 

Contreras said, “How the heck am I not supposed to stay up now?” 

He slept very little and woke up by 6:00 am. Around noon, he still hadn’t heard anything. He turned on a movie, and then his phone rang. It again showed, “Gardenhire, Toby.” 

The manager said, “What are you doing?”

The outfielder responded, “I’m just waiting for you to tell me what to do.” 

Gardenhire asked if he was laying down. 

“Toby, I’ve been anxious all day. I don’t know what’s going on.”

The Saints skipper yells, “Well, get the (redacted) out of here. You’re a big leaguer. You’re heading to the big leagues. 

It took a moment, but Contreras eventually started screaming too. “It was very loud.” 

While he had been in St. Paul since early in the 2021 season, Contreras said that he hadn’t been outside Target Field, inside Target Field, or even seen Target Field. 

Back in college, Contreras had promised his UC-Riverside coach that he would be the first person he would call when he was called up to the big leagues, and he did just that. The coach, after excitement and congratulations, told him that he needed to call his parents. 

That is just one of many incredible stories from Mark Contreras’s 2022 season of memories. Throughout the entire 42-minute interview, you can see the joy on his face and hear it in his voice. Lots of smiles and laughter. So much fun to watch. 

Hear about many topics including: 

• His MLB debut. 
• His first plate appearance (a sacrifice fly). 
• His first hit (off of a right-hander from Cleveland) (Without looking, can you remember?)
• His three home runs. Who were they hit off of? (Without looking, can you remember? OK, here's #1.)

• Facing Jose Berrios in the big leagues, with side commentary from umpire Angel Hernandez, after facing him on the back fields in Ft. Myers in the past.
• What was the response from his minor-league teammates and from the players when he got to the clubhouse?
• Playing in San Diego, in front of a whole bunch of family and friends. 
• Which All-Stars did he talk to when he was on the bases? 
• What was the atmosphere in the Twins clubhouse late in September? 
• How long did it take him to notice just how much comes out of his paycheck for taxes? 
• His offseason plans. 
• His recent engagement. 
• His excitement level when Caleb Hamilton, his roommate all season, got his first hit and first home run. 
• The pride he takes in his outfield defense. 

• Picking Byron Buxton and Carlos Correa’s brains on a variety of skills and techniques. 
• Talking base running and base stealing with Billy Hamilton. 
• Being included among a lot of young, talented players in the Twins organization, in the field, and on the mound. 
• What was he trying to learn with Michael Helman at St. Paul this year? 

This was as enjoyable of a conversation as I’ve had. Listening to Contreras and seeing his enthusiasm and joy following the accomplishment of a huge goal for any baseball player, getting to the big leagues. 

Feel free to ask questions of Mark or simply leave your congratulations. Hopefully, you enjoyed the conversation as much as I did.