Twins sign Willie Castro to minor league deal

Twins and utility players Willi Castro Reportedly agreed to a minor league deal Darren Wolfson of SKOR Radio NorthCastro is invited to major league spring training.

Castro, who turned 26 in April, made his first major league debut with the Tigers in 2019 and has played a utility role with the Tigers ever since. He’s shown some exciting raw tools but has generally struggled to make a full breakout with the bat.In 303 games so far in his career, he’s hit 24 home runs Although he walked only 4.7% of his trips to the plate, he struck out 24.1% of them. His batting average is currently .245/.292/.381 with wRC+86, which puts him 14% below the league average. He’s barrel rate and hard He’s only in the 10th percentile when it comes to his hit rate, but he’s only in the 79th percentile when it comes to maximum exit velocity, so inconsistency in his work at bat seems to be a factor . In other words, he can crush the ball, but he doesn’t do it very often.

But besides intermittent power, he also has other attributes. His sprint speed puts him in the 78th percentile in the league, and in each of the last two seasons he has contributed nine stolen bases. He also possessed defensive versatility, playing his three outfield positions to the left of first base and all his three infield positions. His arm strength ranks in the 87th percentile, and his outfield jump ranks in his 78th percentile. As a switch hitter, he brings versatility to the other side of the game as well.

Castro crossed the three-year prison sentence in 2022 and qualified for arbitration for the first time this winter. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz predicted his annual salary will rise to $1.7 million in 2023.

For the Twins, they dealt with a ton of injuries in 2022, so adding some depth for 2023 was a logical move. Castro’s best avenue to reclaim would probably be infield. Luis Araez at first base, Jorge Polanco Secondly, Kyle Farmer shortstop and Jose Miranda Third. Nick Gordon He may be in the utility/bench infield spot for now, but he’s also in the outfield mix. Lois Lewis It could be a factor going forward, but he is recovering from surgery for a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee for the second year in a row and is not expected to return until mid-season.

If Castro can join Minnesota’s plans, he still has an optional year left and clubs can shuffle him between Triple-A and the majors throughout the year. If he impresses enough to tackle, he could be kept until at least 2025 via arbitration.