Willi Castro's Value to the Twins Is Getting Harder to See

[mnfireman]

Castro ranked 6th on the team in PAs as an OF with 202 (behind Martin (208), ahead of Wallner (196)!!).

Castro ranked 1st on the team in overall PAs with 635.

Castro ranked 1st on the team as IF outside 1B (433), but PAs were spread across 3 positions, 5 counting PH (4) and P (1). These break down as 145 at 2B, behind only Julien (279), 224 at SS, behind only Correa (361), and 59 at 3B, behind Miranda (292) and Lewis (59). These numbers show that he is exactly the definition of a utility player and why I have no problem if the team pencils him everyday at 2B until May 1 with a couple days of subbing in for Correa, allowing Bader to spell Larnach and/or Buxton as needed, until one of Lee, Keaschel or Julien is ready. 

[stringer bell]

39 minutes ago, dxpavelka said:

if 86 games between SS & CF wore him down then it's no wonder Correa & Buxton wear down playing those positions.

I don’t think the number of games at the key positions is what wore him out. He continued to grind while having a back injury and he played a career high number of games. I would speculate that the poor defensive numbers at short and center were exacerbated by his injury and fatigue.  

[mikelink45]

On a team where Castro, Lewis, Miranda and Correa have a history of injury and missing games, with a new fourth OF who can't hit, with Lee not up to league average yet, Julien a mystery, No 1B and no DH - with a utility player (Helman) traded off and Austin Martin not a quality bat or fielder why would you say Castro's value is diminished?  This team needs his speed and versatility.  

[dxpavelka]

28 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

I don’t think the number of games at the key positions is what wore him out. He continued to grind while having a back injury and he played a career high number of games. I would speculate that the poor defensive numbers at short and center were exacerbated by his injury and fatigue.  

"The Twins used utilityman Willi Castro as their backup shortstop and center fielder last season, and they believe that wore him down," I was responding to this Bobby Nightengale quote in the article.  Not necessarily agreeing with it.  But pointing out that if playing (roughly) a quarter of a season at each of those positions wore him down, then it should be considered understandable that others might not hold up to an entire  season at those positions.  Also not necessarily agreeing with that thought but putting it out there.

[NotAboutWinning]

8 hours ago, Heiny said:

Willie Castros offensive category positions.

Games played - 1st

Plate Appearances - 1st

AB - 1st

Runs - 1st

Hits - 1st

Doubles - 1st

Triples - 1st

HR - 8th

RBI - 3rd

SB - 1st

BB - 2nd

BA - 8th

OBP - 5th

SLG - 9th

OPS - 9th

OPS+ - 9th

Versatility - 1st by a long shot.

His value is very high.  As a super utility.

 

These numbers say 2 things:

1) Castro is a valuable, versatile utility player

2) This was a very badly constructed team

[sweetmusicviola16]

20 minutes ago, NotAboutWinning said:

These numbers say 2nthings:

1) Castro is a valuable, versatile utility player

2) This was a very badly constructed team

"But we were great until the August collapse." Not really. We feasted upon bad teams. So, yeah we were better than the terribly bad. But no one was held responsible for the collapse, except the hitting coach. And he was great too as long as we were playing bad teams. 2) is very true. The good teams revealed just how bad the team was constructed. Nothing was rectified either, except it will be Bader playing LF and RF this season instead of Margot.

[bean5302]

2 hours ago, Heiny said:

I totally disagree.  You don't see him on your list because he played so many different positions.  Which is exactly what makes him a utility player.  And a very good one at that.  And that is exactly why he should stay a utility player.  Yet I believe he may have been overused to some degree.

You clearly did not read the discourse because you just agreed with me.

[Heiny]

11 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

You clearly did not read the discourse because you just agreed with me.

My mistake.  I thought you were claiming that he wasn't valuable.

[DJL44]

6 hours ago, Mark G said:

Someone correct me if I am misremembering, but I remember Castro was not an All Star

Willi Castro was an All-Star. He was at the All-Star game.

https://www.mlb.com/news/willi-castro-named-all-star-replacement

[DJL44]

Sorry for the multiple posts. The website is broken. The "submit" button doesn't let you know it has been submitted.

[Parfigliano]

1 minute ago, DJL44 said:

Willi Castro was an All-Star. He was at the All-Star game.

https://www.mlb.com/news/willi-castro-named-all-star-replacement

I believed you the 1st time this was postéd

[Aerodeliria]

Well-said...

[FLYBOY1979]

Sometimes a very good player is very good coming off the bench.  To play all over the place. Don’t break it if it ain’t broke. Castro might just be an all star coming off the bench and playing  and playing all over the place.

[Trov]

If they truly plan to play him full time at 1st that is a terrible plan for him.  His big value is in his ability to move around the field when Rocco makes moves.  

[DocBauer]

I believe the actual comment from Rocco was something to the affect of "we're thinking of using Castro some at 1B". That's like using him some at SS. He never said he would be a full time starter candidate at 1B.

But as of today, that makes him MORE useful and important.

Unfortunately there are still injury questions to be answered. That KEEPS him relevant and important, not less.

He had a .750 OPS in 2023 and was right around that same mark mid 2024 before he hurt his back. Yes, he may have been over used and worn out, but he also hurt his back. His ability to cover all those positions well to adequately, and produce a .750 OPS with some speed and some health concerns at other spots,,,as well as a 4th OF that doesn't hit...makes Castro very valuable. 

I dare suggest that another potential INF signing only frees up Castro for other spots besides SS. (If they even do it). 1B is still a bigger need/question mark, IMO.

Castro shouldn't be going anywhere. And the very fact they are considering even MORE for him to do says they aren't planning on moving him.

[JD-TWINS]

23 hours ago, TheLeviathan said:

A team that hunts match-up advantages through lineup substitutions really shouldn't be looking to dump a switch hitter who can play anywhere but catcher.  This is the kind of player this organization's philosophy absolutely demands.  Couple that with being one of the only guys in the lineup that isn't slow....I absolutely see the value.

This team should be getting Larnach a 1B glove and planting Castro in LF most days with his flexibility allowing them to move others to the DH spot for some rest.

More directly....why are people overreacting to the Twins looking for a backup middle infielder?  This roster has plenty of room for a backup SS and Willi Castro.  I mean...we have people talking about Mickey Gaspar making the team and we think signing a backup infielder relegates him irrelevant?  Yeah, I don't get that conclusion at all.

Gasper - Rule 5 pitcher acquired - Camargo ……..all guys clogging the 40-man IMO. A potential move for a real 1B would be Castro (1yr control) and Matthews (5yr control) and Tonkin for PEN depth to Boston for Casas.

I don’t see the demand for Castro with Bader/Martin/Keaschall/Miranda/Julien/Lee …….a group that can cover Castro’s flexibility over the course of the season.

[JD-TWINS]

22 hours ago, NYCTK said:

Willi Castro was the 5th OF and still played 59 games. 

Everyone is just assuming Rodriguez and Keaschall will be major league ready come May 1st. In reality, there's a great chance neither show they're ready until August, if ever. We could easily be talking in two years ahout them like people do Julien. Especially Rodriguez, considering they seemingly have the same approach at the plate. 

Completely agree on Emma - no real reason to doubt him but the “MLB ready tag” for whenever convenient in ‘25 is a probable fantasy.

Keaschall - he’ll need some time but I’m more hopeful his bat will play by mid-season at least in St Paul…….2B or 1B savior at some point in ‘25 - fingers crossed!

19 hours ago, sweetmusicviola16 said:

With the guys we have, Buxton should be shifted to LF. He's not getting younger. He's been fragile. You now have a CF in Bader, but he should not be a corner guy with that bat. Keirsey gets an oppurtunity to back up CF and can also pick up a rare game in the COF. Larnach gets shifted to sharing 1B with Miranda and also picks up some time in OF. Willi can continue to play around the diamond. He doesn't need to be used at 1B and should be used less than 2024. But imo moving Buxton to LF is crucial at this point and Bader should not be used as Margot 2.0. That has stupid written all over it.

Has the organization ever promoted or even suggested playing Larnach at 1B? I don’t get the thought process, randomly, from the fan base? …….not really worried about Castro and his fit with the Team ……. if traded, OK. If he’s still with the club he’s probably playing most of the time at 2B, assuming health on the left side of infield. He’s not the answer at 1B & I’ll be surprised if he sees an inning there.

[jmlease1]

I think Castro still has a lot of value, even if he's no longer the first choice to backup CF or SS (he wouldn't be my pick either for those positions: Bader is the clear backup in CF and should be, and I'd rather see Lee step in/back up Correa). Castro's value is still tied to his versatility and if he shows he can play a good 1B makes him a high quality bench player.

Being able to pinch hit or pinch run Castro into 6 different positions without needing to make a corresponding move for defensive purposes is really valuable when teams are only carrying a 4 man bench. He's not a great hitter and between injuries and maybe a little over-exposure got ground down in the second half last season; he's probably best suited to get 120-130 games and 330-375 ABs in a season rather than 150+ and 550+, exploiting that versatility and using his speed. I wish he could hit a bit better from the right side, but his splits are still decent enough that he's a reasonable switch-hitter.

But I think the Twins are making a bad choice with their limited roster spots to pick up a backup SS unless it's someone they can stash in AAA as a "break glass in case of emergency". I'd much rather have Willi Castro on the bench than any of the yahoos left on the market at SS and the salary for Castro still more than matches the production.

But nobody is untouchable, really, and if the Twins are able to package Castro and Paddack and a prospect for a significant bat...so be it.

[bean5302]

20 hours ago, Heiny said:

My mistake.  I thought you were claiming that he wasn't valuable.

Not at all. I was refuting the argument which was:
Utility Player = Backup.
Position Player = Starter.

My feel on Castro is he's clearly been deployed as a starter (as he's earned through performance), but in a utility player role. I also think Baldelli should have picked a position for Castro because he'd have provided more value with a fixed position. 

Probably could have clarified my position a little more.

[TheLeviathan]

4 hours ago, JD-TWINS said:

Gasper - Rule 5 pitcher acquired - Camargo ……..all guys clogging the 40-man IMO. A potential move for a real 1B would be Castro (1yr control) and Matthews (5yr control) and Tonkin for PEN depth to Boston for Casas.

I don’t see the demand for Castro with Bader/Martin/Keaschall/Miranda/Julien/Lee …….a group that can cover Castro’s flexibility over the course of the season.

I mean...sure, if you want to trade him for a nice 1B I'm in.  But the advantages Castro brings, as is, are still abundantly clear IMO.  Especially given the way the Twins employ their roster.

[TopGunn#22]

Castro's strength is his versatility.  But it seems like a waste to me, to put one of your more physically gifted and athletic players at 1B.  Castro's speed, arm and glove are better deployed everywhere else but 1B.  Someone made the point that one of the unappreciated values of Castro is that you can PH or pinch run him for a LOT of people throughout the lineup and then just leave him at the position he hit or ran for.  

That kind of talent makes Castro a "manager's dream" because it's fat less stressful to try to slice and dice the lineup without that kind of versatility.  

But, I DO agree that with guys like Keaschall, Eeles and Culpepper coming up as well as OF's like E-Rod and Jenkins, the Twins will have depth options that will eventually lead to them trading Castro.  

Think about it, if you had to deploy Miranda at one corner infield positions and Castro at the other, wouldn't you just play Castro at 3B?  If the choice was to play Julien and Castro at 1B/2B, wouldn't you just start Castro at 2B?  Isn't he the better defender at the more difficult position? 

And the idea that Larnach should maybe get a 1B-mitt and take some grounders and throws over there is an idea that Larnach himself should be having !!!  He's not as good in LF as Castro.  He's not better in LF than Bader.  And when E-Rod and Jenkins arrive, his days in the OF for the Twins will be hard to come by.  Adding 1B to his resume would help the Twins but also any team the Twins might trade him too. 

[Jacksson]

If "THE PLAN" was to trade Willi, why did they choose to loose Helman for cash and not just delay the signing of Bader & Columbe UNTIL pitchers & catchers reported and roster space could be gained through the use of the DL ??  The Bader signing would indicate that Willi either is the starter at 2B and/or is the RH platoon OF with Bader against LHP.

[bean5302]

2 minutes ago, Jacksson said:

If "THE PLAN" was to trade Willi, why did they choose to loose Helman for cash and not just delay the signing of Bader & Columbe UNTIL pitchers & catchers reported and roster space could be gained through the use of the DL ??  The Bader signing would indicate that Willi either is the starter at 2B and/or is the RH platoon OF with Bader against LHP.

Because... Falvey? It's too early to be making big roster moves for him. Spring Training hasn't officially reached the half way point where Falvey realizes he has 30+  26 man roster guys.