Phillies Sign IF Juan Castro

Not very exciting I know, but it's the first real nibble of the offseason. He'd replace Bruntlett as the utility infielder.

2 months ago Aphilfan 16 comments 0 recs |

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virtually done

Per Scott Lauber. WTF.

http://www.thegoodphight.com

by WholeCamels on Nov 24, 2009 3:19 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Whoops, pulled down my Fanpost on the topic.

Here’s what I said, for what it’s worth.

Who’s ready for the Mexican Eric Bruntlett?

Scott Lauber reports that the Phillies have essentially agreed on a deal with former Dodgers utilityman Juan Castro, with only a physical standing in the way of a done deal. Castro, who will be 38 next year, has experience at every infield position.

Still, this is a career .230/.270/.332 hitter, and his fielding appears to have slipped over the past several years (small sample size warning, however). He’s coming off a .277/.311/.339 spell over 112 at bats with LA.

Have to say I agree with Crashburn Alley here: wouldn’t Adam Everett, Jerry Hairston, or Jamey Carroll be better? What about Craig Counsell, Ronnie Belliard, or Alex Cora?

The long and short of it: Castro is an awful option. Ugh.

by PhillyFriar on Nov 24, 2009 3:30 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Jason over at Beerleaguer raises a good point: we don’t yet know if this is a major or minor league deal.

No harm, no foul if it’s the latter. If it’s the former… well, why do we keep buying high on Dodgers reclamation projects? (Park last year.)

by PhillyFriar on Nov 24, 2009 3:33 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

True, he may not be replacing Bruntlett, he may be replacing Cairo.

Also, some of our Dodgers reclamation projects have worked pretty well. Though, admittedly, it’s a huge leap from Vic and Werth to Park and Castro.

by Cormican on Nov 24, 2009 3:48 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

I take back some of the nice things I said about the FO.

Seriously, if the idea is to get someone Manuel would feel comfortable with spot-starting every two weeks for Utley and Rollins, this could well be a downgrade from Beardo.

by dajafi on Nov 24, 2009 3:32 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

CSN

What you wrote ended up on the csn truth and rumors page. Link

by philsfreak6 on Nov 24, 2009 7:17 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Stoopid. They don’t learn, do they?

by FuquaManuel on Nov 24, 2009 3:48 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Philly.com says:

“A source familiar with talks between the club and the veteran infielder said the two sides have agreed in principle on a one-year
major league deal with a club option, pending a physical that likely will not occur until Castro returns from vacation next week.”

LINK

by Walcott on Nov 24, 2009 4:55 PM EST reply actions 0 recs

Was just about to post the same thing. The fact that it was done so quickly was a tipoff that it was a ML deal, honestly. Don’t particularly like this, but it’s not enough for me to get upset over just yet.

by Aphilfan on Nov 24, 2009 5:01 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs

Sweet. We’ll pay Castro guaranteed money to do something that any number of guys that could be extended an NRI are capable of.

Well, I’m officially done holding back my opinion: this deal sucks. Castro can’t hit, he hasn’t been a particularly good fielder as his body has aged, and I’m 100% positive we’re signing him because Amaro thinks his .277 batting average across 112 at bats last year means something. I’ll tell you what it means, Rube: it means he had a .349 BABIP, and even with that, he still OPS+’ed 76.

Putting the focus only on defense for the remaining bench spots was a bad idea in the first place, but even if they chose to go that route, there were several superior candidates: Counsell, Vizquel, Everett, and even John McDonald come to mind. Unlike Castro, some of those guys can actually hit a little, and the ones that can’t (Everett and McDonald) are still better fielders than Castro.

by PhillyFriar on Nov 24, 2009 5:14 PM EST up reply actions 0 recs