Explaining the Willson Contreras-Brandon Woodruff drama after Red Sox vs Brewers incident

Boston Red Sox fans and Fenway Park goers know a thing or two about a heated rivalry. On April 6, one of the newest Red Sox re-lived an old beef with the Milwaukee Brewers, which will surely continue for the rest of their three-game series in Boston.

In the third inning of their series-opening game, Brandon Woodruff grazed Willson Contreras' hand with a pitch high and inside. Contreras dropped his bat and jawed back and forth with Woodruff all the way to first base, escorted by his brother and Brewers catcher, William Contreras, seemingly to keep a brawl from breaking out.

Milwaukee even challenged the hit by pitch call because Contreras was just barely hit on his hand guard, but its attempt to overturn the call was unsuccessful. Contreras' reaction seemed disproportionate to the hit or the amount of pain he may have been in after the contact. Then, reports started flowing in. Contreras has a long history with Woodruff and the Brewers (subscription required).

Contreras has been hit by a Milwaukee pitcher 24 times in his career. Woodruff, alone, has plunked him six times over many years, leading back to his tenure with the Chicago Cubs from 2016-22. After the game, he gave a clear message: if he's hit again, he'll respond (which he may have already done when he slid into former Red Sox infielder David Hamilton at second base, although Hamilton stood over the bag for quite some time).

New Red Sox Willson Contreras explains his longtime beef with Brewers and pitcher Brandon Woodruff

Contreras is a hit-by-pitch magnet. He's been hit 131 times over his 11 years in the major leagues, the second-most for an active player (No. 1 goes to Starling Marte).

His long history with the Brewers also makes sense. He's been a staple in the National League Central for the first 10 years of his career, which began with the Cubs, then he signed with the St. Louis Cardinals as a free agent. He's faced Milwaukee in four series per year since 2016, which works out to 121 games.

It tracks that Contreras would be hit most by the Brewers, the team he's faced more than any other, but being hit six times by the same pitcher is excessive. Contreras is known for playing with much emotion, and he took the hit as an excuse to rile his teammates up while they've been struggling. It didn't work, however, as the Red Sox still lost, 8-5, and dropped to 2-8 on the season.

Boston and Milwaukee still have two games remaining in this series, and Contreras will likely be in all of them, giving his longtime rivals a chance to strike back for his reaction to the hit by pitch on Monday night. Maybe Contreras charging the mound is just the spark the Red Sox need to wake up after their most sluggish start in years.