Multiple teams may target Luis Castillo
Buster Olney
ESPN Insider
Luis Castillo may have lost his support among New York Mets fans by the time he was placed on waivers Friday, but he has long-standing connections around baseball, established through his past success. Which is why he will almost certainly have a new job within 24 hours after he clears waivers today at 1 p.m.
<OFFER>
Maybe it will be with the Philadelphia Phillies, who could be looking for a stopgap as they wait to see if Chase Utley responds to his new methods of rehabilitation, as recommended by a specialist.
Maybe Castillo will find a spot with the Colorado Rockies, who have fished around for infield help since the winter meetings.
Maybe it will be with the Chicago Cubs, who have seen their two internal second base candidates, Blake DeWitt and Jeff Baker, fail to seize the job; reportedly, Mike Quade has some questions about DeWitt's defense. Remember, too, that Chicago GM Jim Hendry knows Castillo well from his time with the Florida Marlins, where he was an assistant to then-GM Dave Dombrowski, and where Castillo started his major league career, and where Castillo helped the Marlins win a championship in 1997. Hendry talked about a possible Castillo-for-Milton Bradley deal last year.
Maybe Castillo's next job could be with the Marlins. There is a need there, perhaps, with third baseman Matt Dominguez struggling at the plate this spring, hitting under .200; the Marlins think Dominguez can play big league caliber defense now, but believe that his offense is behind his defense and may prefer to send him to the minors. They could shift Omar Infante to third base, with Castillo or Emilio Bonifacio becoming the everyday second baseman.
And it's worth remembering Castillo's history with Marlins owner Jeff Loria, who wears a championship ring in part because of Castillo's play with the team in 2003. When Loria visited the Vatican and had an audience with the Pope, he brought back a blessed cross for Castillo.
None of that personal history will matter, of course, if Castillo struggles in his next job. But in baseball -- as in a lot of industries -- it's about who you know, and Castillo, a respected veteran with 15 years, a .290 lifetime average and 370 career steals, will be employed again very shortly.
• Speaking of the Mets: Oliver Perez's time with the team might end today. Now that Mets fans are making the decisions about the roster -- and club executives acknowledged the Castillo decision was done, in part, because of how unpopular the infielder was with the fan base -- Mike Vaccaro lists some other moves they want.
• Neftali Feliz had a solid outing Saturday, allowing just two runs in five innings, and his performance probably made the Texas Rangers debate of whether to start him or use him at closer even more complicated. This is probably the most prominent unresolved situation in the majors right now, and Gil LeBreton talked to Nolan Ryan, who offered one solution:
"Can we clone him?" asked Ryan.
From Gil's story:
Even as he paced himself, Feliz's fastball regularly clocked between 94 mph and 96. His slider locked knees. His changeup, which at one point he threw two pitches in a row, elicited weak swings.
"His mound presence, his use of his other pitches," Ryan said, continuing the litany of Feliz praises.
"Today I thought he looked more 'starter-ish' than he's looked so far."
And meanwhile, the Texas bullpen just keeps on getting hammered: The Rangers' relievers have allowed 30 runs in the past four games.
• The San Francisco Giants have not decided whether to open the season with Brandon Belt, manager Bruce Bochy wrote in a text message. Today, both Belt and Aubrey Huff will be in the lineup together, with Belt at first base and Huff in left field, Alex Pavlovic writes.
Bochy's take on Belt: "A good spring for him. Solid approach, with good balance at the plate. Rare for a young hitter to have the kind of discipline he has. He uses the whole field well, with pop. A plus defender at first base."
Don't dismiss the raves as empty praise from a manager; Bochy is pretty serious. And I emailed a talent evaluator from another team, someone who has seen Belt a lot in the Arizona Fall League and this spring, and asked for his take on the Giants' first baseman. His response:
"A lot of amateur scouts are questioning themselves for letting this guy to fall to the fifth round in the 2009 draft. Defensively he will be above average -- he has a good arm, soft hands, very good actions and instincts. Offensively, he has a simple short swing, and he is aggressive in swinging the bat -- but is selective. Good bat speed and a gap-to-gap approach with more of a line-drive stroke than a power-loft stroke. He hangs in well against left-handed pitchers. I don't think you will see a ton of homers, but enough to go with his on-base percentage, doubles power and RBI. I think he plays well in the Giants' home park, with the big gaps. Not a high-ceiling guy, but a good bet to be a very good first baseman for the Giants for years to come."
• Matt Thornton has been named the Chicago White Sox closer. It's the safe play, to give Chris Sale more time to develop.
And within the same piece, there is word that Jake Peavy is now lined up and ready to go for the start of the season. The White Sox have had a great camp.
• Johnny Cueto is being flown back to Cincinnati, where his arm will be examined, John Fay writes.
• Wrote here the other day about the possible Washington lineups; Jim Riggleman says now he probably would hit Danny Espinosa in the No. 7 spot if the season started today, partly because of what he learned from Ian Desmond's past experience in the No. 8 spot.
Dings and dents
1. Brian Wilson will probably miss the start of the season because of a strained oblique.
2. Frank Francisco still feels a knot in his shoulder, leaving the Toronto Blue Jays closing situation up in the air.
3. Within this piece, there is word that the Arizona Diamondbacks still don't know the severity of J.J. Putz's back trouble. This is a very big deal, because Arizona counted on Putz to be the anchor of its bullpen reconstruction, the closer who would give the rest of the relief corps structure.
4. The Milwaukee Brewers got some encouraging news on Shaun Marcum, although he will miss a spring start.
5. Derrek Lee was in the lineup for the first time with the Orioles, writes Dan Connolly.
6. Joe Mauer played catcher for the first time this spring.
7. Justin Morneau is choosing safety over style, writes Kelsie Smith. From the fascinating story:
The Rawlings S100 helmet can withstand an impact of up to 100 mph, hence the name. The Rawlings Coolflo helmet the vast majority of big-leaguers wear protects up to just 70 miles an hour, a speed surpassed by virtually every pitch thrown in the majors.
"If you walked up to someone who doesn't know that, I think they'd be shocked to find out that their helmet is rated for a Little League pitch compared to a big-league fastball," said Morneau, who went 2 for 4 (both singles) as the DH in a minor league game Saturday, his first time this spring playing in back-to-back games. "I'm sure Major League Baseball and the union won't be happy with me saying that, but I think they should just change it so everybody can wear it. Number one, it wouldn't look out of place, and number two, everyone would be safer."
Dan Halem, senior vice president and general council of labor for MLB, said they're trying.
8. Joe Beimel was a scratch, because of discomfort in his elbow. Not good.
The battle for jobs
1. Esmil Rogers could all but lock up the No. 5 spot in the Colorado rotation today.
2. Craig Kimbrel has had six straight scoreless outings for the Atlanta Braves, who continue to have a great training camp. In those six outings, Kimbrel has eight strikeouts and one walk.
3. Brett Lawrie continues to impress. The guess here continues to be that Lawrie will open the year in the minors, given the fact that he hasn't played above Double-A.
4. Rubby De La Rosa continues to look great for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
5. With Jason Donald now having been diagnosed with a broken bone, Jack Hannahan is now slated to be the Cleveland Indians' third baseman. And Manny Acta made this clear: Lonnie Chisenhall is not an option at this point.
6. Kyle McClellan has all but wrapped up the No. 5 spot in the St. Louis Cardinals' rotation.
7. Charlie Manuel is undecided on who his right fielder will be.
8. Wily Peralta was not good in his audition for the No. 5 spot in the Milwaukee rotation Saturday.
9. Jerry Hairston is going to get a look in center field for the Washington Nationals. As mentioned within this Adam Kilgore piece, it appears less and less likely that Nyjer Morgan will win the Washington center field job.
10. Brandon Beachy, fighting for the No. 5 spot in the Atlanta rotation, had a really good day, Carroll Rogers writes. A couple of scouts have mentioned to me that in their eyes, Beachy has been better than Mike Minor. But whether it's Beachy or Minor, the loser would still wind up getting 20-plus starts, given the nature of injuries these days.
11. Some decisions are looming for the Kansas City Royals, writes Bob Dutton.
Moves, deals and decisions
1. The Texas Rangers haven't had any recent conversations about Michael Young, according to sources.
2. Kirk Gibson is still thinking about his Opening Day lineup, and right now he's thinking he'll have Justin Upton hit either in the No. 3 or No. 4 spot.
3. It looks like Marlon Byrd will hit third for the Cubs; Gordon Wittenmyer writes that the middle of the Cubs' lineup could look like this:
Starlin Castro in the No. 2 spot
Byrd
Aramis Ramirez
Carlos Pena
Alfonso Soriano
Geovany Soto
4. The Nationals have built their roster around Scott Boras clients, writes Jason Reid.
5. A couple of pitchers who were cut by the Phillies will probably be back, writes Matt Gelb.
6. With the other options now available to Bob Geren, Kurt Suzuki will be shifted down in the lineup, John Shea writes.
7. A.J. Burnett is now positioned to be the No. 2 starter for the New York Yankees.
8. The Marlins' rotation sequence could change, with Ricky Nolasco being bumped back.
Saturday's games
1. Scott Kazmir had another brutal outing and now has 11 walks in 11-plus innings. Not good. Wrote here a couple of weeks ago that scouts were stunned by Kazmir's diminished velocity.
2. Andy Dirks, trying to win a spot on the Detroit Tigers roster, got another big hit in what has been a monstrous spring performance. Daniel Schlereth was in control, Tom Gage writes.
3. Joe Saunders says he's not worried about his spring ERA, which is 14.54 after his start Saturday.
4. Within this notebook, there is word that Aaron Harang had a really good outing Saturday. If you're looking for late-round sleepers in a fantasy draft, Harang would be a good one; he should benefit, in a big way, from the shift to Petco.
5. Matt Garza had a bad game, and blamed the mound, Dave van Dyck writes.
6. Kevin Correia felt strong.
7. Josh Beckett had a bad inning, writes Tim Britton.
Other stuff
• Ryan Theriot, penciled in to be the Cardinals' shortstop, is not having a good spring.
• Will Venable is having a strong spring for the San Diego Padres.
• Evan Longoria should benefit from the presence of Manny Ramirez hitting behind him, writes Tony Fabrizio.
• The Seattle Mariners have addressed some questions, but there are many issues to be resolved, writes Larry Stone.
• The Rockies' search for prospects has led them to a deeper search in Latin America, writes Jim Armstrong.
• Yankees GM Brian Cashman has survived 25 years with the organization, Harvey Araton writes.
• Edwin Rodriguez has shown restraint in a spring of questions for the Marlins, writes Dave Hyde.
• A coach believes he knows the source of the Pittsburgh Pirates' defensive trouble.
• There will be a pressurized situation for the Boston Red Sox closer, writes Nick Cafardo.
• There were some problems with the Minnesota Twins' online sales.
• Alex Rodriguez relishes the chance to become an all-time Yankee, writes Joel Sherman.
• Carlos Pena thinks he thinks too much.
• Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell are helping with the Houston prospects.
• Joe Maddon is sporting new glasses.
• The trivia question within this Marc Topkin notebook: Which member of Tampa Bay's roster named his dog after Derek Jeter?
• The Hardy brothers have helped each other through a lot, writes Jeff Zrebiec.
• No. 2-ranked Vanderbilt racked up another shutout -- the Commodores' 12th straight win.
• My NCAA bracket looks like Swiss cheese. And normally, I love Swiss cheese.
Buster Olney
ESPN Insider
Luis Castillo may have lost his support among New York Mets fans by the time he was placed on waivers Friday, but he has long-standing connections around baseball, established through his past success. Which is why he will almost certainly have a new job within 24 hours after he clears waivers today at 1 p.m.
<OFFER>
Maybe it will be with the Philadelphia Phillies, who could be looking for a stopgap as they wait to see if Chase Utley responds to his new methods of rehabilitation, as recommended by a specialist.
Maybe Castillo will find a spot with the Colorado Rockies, who have fished around for infield help since the winter meetings.
Maybe it will be with the Chicago Cubs, who have seen their two internal second base candidates, Blake DeWitt and Jeff Baker, fail to seize the job; reportedly, Mike Quade has some questions about DeWitt's defense. Remember, too, that Chicago GM Jim Hendry knows Castillo well from his time with the Florida Marlins, where he was an assistant to then-GM Dave Dombrowski, and where Castillo started his major league career, and where Castillo helped the Marlins win a championship in 1997. Hendry talked about a possible Castillo-for-Milton Bradley deal last year.
Maybe Castillo's next job could be with the Marlins. There is a need there, perhaps, with third baseman Matt Dominguez struggling at the plate this spring, hitting under .200; the Marlins think Dominguez can play big league caliber defense now, but believe that his offense is behind his defense and may prefer to send him to the minors. They could shift Omar Infante to third base, with Castillo or Emilio Bonifacio becoming the everyday second baseman.
And it's worth remembering Castillo's history with Marlins owner Jeff Loria, who wears a championship ring in part because of Castillo's play with the team in 2003. When Loria visited the Vatican and had an audience with the Pope, he brought back a blessed cross for Castillo.
None of that personal history will matter, of course, if Castillo struggles in his next job. But in baseball -- as in a lot of industries -- it's about who you know, and Castillo, a respected veteran with 15 years, a .290 lifetime average and 370 career steals, will be employed again very shortly.
• Speaking of the Mets: Oliver Perez's time with the team might end today. Now that Mets fans are making the decisions about the roster -- and club executives acknowledged the Castillo decision was done, in part, because of how unpopular the infielder was with the fan base -- Mike Vaccaro lists some other moves they want.
• Neftali Feliz had a solid outing Saturday, allowing just two runs in five innings, and his performance probably made the Texas Rangers debate of whether to start him or use him at closer even more complicated. This is probably the most prominent unresolved situation in the majors right now, and Gil LeBreton talked to Nolan Ryan, who offered one solution:
"Can we clone him?" asked Ryan.
From Gil's story:
Even as he paced himself, Feliz's fastball regularly clocked between 94 mph and 96. His slider locked knees. His changeup, which at one point he threw two pitches in a row, elicited weak swings.
"His mound presence, his use of his other pitches," Ryan said, continuing the litany of Feliz praises.
"Today I thought he looked more 'starter-ish' than he's looked so far."
And meanwhile, the Texas bullpen just keeps on getting hammered: The Rangers' relievers have allowed 30 runs in the past four games.
• The San Francisco Giants have not decided whether to open the season with Brandon Belt, manager Bruce Bochy wrote in a text message. Today, both Belt and Aubrey Huff will be in the lineup together, with Belt at first base and Huff in left field, Alex Pavlovic writes.
Bochy's take on Belt: "A good spring for him. Solid approach, with good balance at the plate. Rare for a young hitter to have the kind of discipline he has. He uses the whole field well, with pop. A plus defender at first base."
Don't dismiss the raves as empty praise from a manager; Bochy is pretty serious. And I emailed a talent evaluator from another team, someone who has seen Belt a lot in the Arizona Fall League and this spring, and asked for his take on the Giants' first baseman. His response:
"A lot of amateur scouts are questioning themselves for letting this guy to fall to the fifth round in the 2009 draft. Defensively he will be above average -- he has a good arm, soft hands, very good actions and instincts. Offensively, he has a simple short swing, and he is aggressive in swinging the bat -- but is selective. Good bat speed and a gap-to-gap approach with more of a line-drive stroke than a power-loft stroke. He hangs in well against left-handed pitchers. I don't think you will see a ton of homers, but enough to go with his on-base percentage, doubles power and RBI. I think he plays well in the Giants' home park, with the big gaps. Not a high-ceiling guy, but a good bet to be a very good first baseman for the Giants for years to come."
• Matt Thornton has been named the Chicago White Sox closer. It's the safe play, to give Chris Sale more time to develop.
And within the same piece, there is word that Jake Peavy is now lined up and ready to go for the start of the season. The White Sox have had a great camp.
• Johnny Cueto is being flown back to Cincinnati, where his arm will be examined, John Fay writes.
• Wrote here the other day about the possible Washington lineups; Jim Riggleman says now he probably would hit Danny Espinosa in the No. 7 spot if the season started today, partly because of what he learned from Ian Desmond's past experience in the No. 8 spot.
Dings and dents
1. Brian Wilson will probably miss the start of the season because of a strained oblique.
2. Frank Francisco still feels a knot in his shoulder, leaving the Toronto Blue Jays closing situation up in the air.
3. Within this piece, there is word that the Arizona Diamondbacks still don't know the severity of J.J. Putz's back trouble. This is a very big deal, because Arizona counted on Putz to be the anchor of its bullpen reconstruction, the closer who would give the rest of the relief corps structure.
4. The Milwaukee Brewers got some encouraging news on Shaun Marcum, although he will miss a spring start.
5. Derrek Lee was in the lineup for the first time with the Orioles, writes Dan Connolly.
6. Joe Mauer played catcher for the first time this spring.
7. Justin Morneau is choosing safety over style, writes Kelsie Smith. From the fascinating story:
The Rawlings S100 helmet can withstand an impact of up to 100 mph, hence the name. The Rawlings Coolflo helmet the vast majority of big-leaguers wear protects up to just 70 miles an hour, a speed surpassed by virtually every pitch thrown in the majors.
"If you walked up to someone who doesn't know that, I think they'd be shocked to find out that their helmet is rated for a Little League pitch compared to a big-league fastball," said Morneau, who went 2 for 4 (both singles) as the DH in a minor league game Saturday, his first time this spring playing in back-to-back games. "I'm sure Major League Baseball and the union won't be happy with me saying that, but I think they should just change it so everybody can wear it. Number one, it wouldn't look out of place, and number two, everyone would be safer."
Dan Halem, senior vice president and general council of labor for MLB, said they're trying.
8. Joe Beimel was a scratch, because of discomfort in his elbow. Not good.
The battle for jobs
1. Esmil Rogers could all but lock up the No. 5 spot in the Colorado rotation today.
2. Craig Kimbrel has had six straight scoreless outings for the Atlanta Braves, who continue to have a great training camp. In those six outings, Kimbrel has eight strikeouts and one walk.
3. Brett Lawrie continues to impress. The guess here continues to be that Lawrie will open the year in the minors, given the fact that he hasn't played above Double-A.
4. Rubby De La Rosa continues to look great for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
5. With Jason Donald now having been diagnosed with a broken bone, Jack Hannahan is now slated to be the Cleveland Indians' third baseman. And Manny Acta made this clear: Lonnie Chisenhall is not an option at this point.
6. Kyle McClellan has all but wrapped up the No. 5 spot in the St. Louis Cardinals' rotation.
7. Charlie Manuel is undecided on who his right fielder will be.
8. Wily Peralta was not good in his audition for the No. 5 spot in the Milwaukee rotation Saturday.
9. Jerry Hairston is going to get a look in center field for the Washington Nationals. As mentioned within this Adam Kilgore piece, it appears less and less likely that Nyjer Morgan will win the Washington center field job.
10. Brandon Beachy, fighting for the No. 5 spot in the Atlanta rotation, had a really good day, Carroll Rogers writes. A couple of scouts have mentioned to me that in their eyes, Beachy has been better than Mike Minor. But whether it's Beachy or Minor, the loser would still wind up getting 20-plus starts, given the nature of injuries these days.
11. Some decisions are looming for the Kansas City Royals, writes Bob Dutton.
Moves, deals and decisions
1. The Texas Rangers haven't had any recent conversations about Michael Young, according to sources.
2. Kirk Gibson is still thinking about his Opening Day lineup, and right now he's thinking he'll have Justin Upton hit either in the No. 3 or No. 4 spot.
3. It looks like Marlon Byrd will hit third for the Cubs; Gordon Wittenmyer writes that the middle of the Cubs' lineup could look like this:
Starlin Castro in the No. 2 spot
Byrd
Aramis Ramirez
Carlos Pena
Alfonso Soriano
Geovany Soto
4. The Nationals have built their roster around Scott Boras clients, writes Jason Reid.
5. A couple of pitchers who were cut by the Phillies will probably be back, writes Matt Gelb.
6. With the other options now available to Bob Geren, Kurt Suzuki will be shifted down in the lineup, John Shea writes.
7. A.J. Burnett is now positioned to be the No. 2 starter for the New York Yankees.
8. The Marlins' rotation sequence could change, with Ricky Nolasco being bumped back.
Saturday's games
1. Scott Kazmir had another brutal outing and now has 11 walks in 11-plus innings. Not good. Wrote here a couple of weeks ago that scouts were stunned by Kazmir's diminished velocity.
2. Andy Dirks, trying to win a spot on the Detroit Tigers roster, got another big hit in what has been a monstrous spring performance. Daniel Schlereth was in control, Tom Gage writes.
3. Joe Saunders says he's not worried about his spring ERA, which is 14.54 after his start Saturday.
4. Within this notebook, there is word that Aaron Harang had a really good outing Saturday. If you're looking for late-round sleepers in a fantasy draft, Harang would be a good one; he should benefit, in a big way, from the shift to Petco.
5. Matt Garza had a bad game, and blamed the mound, Dave van Dyck writes.
6. Kevin Correia felt strong.
7. Josh Beckett had a bad inning, writes Tim Britton.
Other stuff
• Ryan Theriot, penciled in to be the Cardinals' shortstop, is not having a good spring.
• Will Venable is having a strong spring for the San Diego Padres.
• Evan Longoria should benefit from the presence of Manny Ramirez hitting behind him, writes Tony Fabrizio.
• The Seattle Mariners have addressed some questions, but there are many issues to be resolved, writes Larry Stone.
• The Rockies' search for prospects has led them to a deeper search in Latin America, writes Jim Armstrong.
• Yankees GM Brian Cashman has survived 25 years with the organization, Harvey Araton writes.
• Edwin Rodriguez has shown restraint in a spring of questions for the Marlins, writes Dave Hyde.
• A coach believes he knows the source of the Pittsburgh Pirates' defensive trouble.
• There will be a pressurized situation for the Boston Red Sox closer, writes Nick Cafardo.
• There were some problems with the Minnesota Twins' online sales.
• Alex Rodriguez relishes the chance to become an all-time Yankee, writes Joel Sherman.
• Carlos Pena thinks he thinks too much.
• Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell are helping with the Houston prospects.
• Joe Maddon is sporting new glasses.
• The trivia question within this Marc Topkin notebook: Which member of Tampa Bay's roster named his dog after Derek Jeter?
• The Hardy brothers have helped each other through a lot, writes Jeff Zrebiec.
• No. 2-ranked Vanderbilt racked up another shutout -- the Commodores' 12th straight win.
• My NCAA bracket looks like Swiss cheese. And normally, I love Swiss cheese.
