BA: Rusney Castillo wows in workout

[ace3113]

http://www.baseballamerica.com/international/rusney-castillo-wows-miami-workout/

 

CORAL GABLES, Fla.—Cuban defector Rusney Castillo, 27, is a prime example of what makes scouting so difficult.

 

The free-agent outfielder worked out for two hours and 45 minutes—minus countless water breaks and wardrobe changes—in blistering heat at the University of Miami on Saturday.

 

Between scouts, reporters, handlers and others, there were well over 100 people at Mark Light Stadium, and all of them had their eyes trained on the 5-foot-9, 205-pound Castillo.

 

“Always in the beginning, you feel some pressure,” Castillo said when asked about performing in front of so many scouts. “But then you adjust and relax.”

 

Cuban players are now trending up in the major leagues after the recent success of stars such as power hitters Yasiel Puig (Dodgers) and Yoenis Cespedes (A’s) and power pitcher Aroldis Chapman (Reds), who were three of the five Cubans in the 2014 All-Star Game.

 

No scout wants to miss the next great thing, which is why there were talent evaluators from 28 of the 30 MLB teams at Saturday’s event, according to one of Castillo’s agents (he’s represented by Jay-Z’s Roc Nation Sports). That agent, though, declined to say which organizations did not attend.

 

Just what those scouts really thought about Castillo—and which talent evaluators turn out to be correct—is the tricky part.

 

It’s very difficult to gauge an athlete off a workout as opposed to a live game against quality opposition. And while Castillo did take live batting practice, he did so against a pitcher who recently graduated from a Division II college and went undrafted.

 

Scouts, as usual, spoke off the record on Saturday, leaving reporters to try to ascertain what their motives might be for certain comments.

 

Could a negative quote be part of an attempt to knock down Castillo’s asking price? It’s possible. Could a positive quote be an attempt to curry favor with Castillo’s agents? It’s possible.

 

In general, though, Castillo looked fast. But how fast is open to interpretation, too, and we’ll have more on that later.

 

Castillo took fly balls in right and center, although scouts indicated his arm plays more to center or even left. (Castillo said his preferred position is center.) He also took ground balls at shortstop, although no one really expects him to play there.

 

Perhaps the most pleasantly surprising aspect of Castillo’s game was the power he showed and the ability to hit to the opposite field with authority.

 

Again, though, he wasn’t facing David Price.

 

With all that as a prelude, here are more details on what was, ultimately, Castillo’s attempt to earn a big-money MLB contract:

 

THE SPRINT

 

Castillo ran the 60-yard dash somewhere between 6.4 seconds and 6.5, depending on which scout you asked. Castillo gave a slight “deke” before he started his sprint, which threw off some stop-watches.

 

Either way, though, Castillo is a plus runner by consensus of various scouts.

 

On a 20-80 scale, one scout gave Castillo the highest possible grade, which seemed a bit overstated. On the other end of the spectrum, another scout had Castillo a 60 runner who happened to run a 70 time on this day.

 

Let’s meet in the middle and say Castillo is a 70 runner, but another scout pointed out that “running in a straight line is not the same thing as running the bases. I would have liked to have seen him run out of the batter’s box or go from first to third.”

 

It’s a good point, and it again shows that there’s only so much you can learn from a workout as opposed to watching him for several games in a season. These scouts, though, did not have that latter luxury.

 

OUTFIELD THROWS

 

Castillo started out in right field, fielding base hits and firing to third base. He then took base hits and threw home. All his throws were on a line and hit the mark on the fly or on one hop.

 

However, by the time he charged those base hits, he was in medium to shallow right field.

 

“He has a 50 arm,” said one scout. “It’s an average big league arm. He could be used in all three outfield spots in a pinch, but his arm plays more like a left fielder.”

 

Added another scout after the entire workout was over: “His arm is his weakest tool.”

 

FIELDING

 

This might be the toughest area to judge Castillo if all you have to go on is this workout. Most every ball was hit right at him, and the only one that would have presented a challenge—a ball hit to left-center—Castillo did not chase after his handlers told him to stay put, probably not wanting him to overexert himself.

 

Still, this did not please one scout. “If I just came from Cuba and was trying to get to the big leagues, I would have chased that ball down and put it in my back pocket,” the scout said.

 

BATTING PRACTICE

 

Next, Castillo took to the batting cages to loosen up his swing. Taking under-hand tosses from one of his handlers, Castillo showed a natural lift to his hacks, upper-cutting balls with force.

 

After a few minutes in the cage, Castillo took three rounds of batting practice on the field. This is where he made his biggest impression.

 

“After his second round of batting practice, I would have stopped right there because I didn’t think he could improve on that,” one scout said. “But he did.”

 

Even the scout who was critical of him for not going for that batted ball in the left-center gap was impressed with his hitting.

 

“I like him,” the scout said. “He’s a major league player.”

 

HITTING LIVE

 

After batting practice, Castillo hit live against 6-foot-3 righthander Nate Carter, 22, who was 4-1, 1.54 with eight saves for Division II Florida Southern this past season.

 

Carter, who said he throws between 89 and 94 mph, said he used his fastball and curve against Castillo.

 

“I tried to throw strikes to give him a chance to show what he could do,” Carter said. “But I wanted to throw quality strikes.”

 

Carter was asked how well he thought Castillo did with his pitches. “He’s a great hitter,” Carter said. “I threw some fastballs at the knees on the outside corner, and he hit them over the fence or close to it.”

 

Castillo took 16 cuts, missing two and fouling off eight. Of the six he hit fair, only one was a likely out, a couple of shots were off the wall and a couple went over the fence.

 

SHORTSTOP DEFENSE

 

Castillo took 20 ground balls at shortstop and didn’t miss any, although he did skip one throw past the first baseman for what would have been an error.

 

He looked hesitant at the start but then seemed to get more comfortable. He got rid of the ball quickly when tossing to second to start a double play. Castillo ended his workout by charging a slow roller and tossing across his body to first base.

 

“What more do you want?” one of his handlers yelled at no one in particular, his voice equal parts defiance and celebratory.

 

It was a nice way to end the workout, but it likely didn’t mean much. Castillo is an outfielder, not an infielder, although back in the 2009-10 season in Cuba he played 26 games at second base and seven at third before moving to the outfield full-time. He can run—no one argues that—and his value will ultimately be determined by what scouts think of his bat.

 

HANDLE WITH CARE

 

A comical aspect of the workout was the way the “handlers” treated Castillo, toweling him off after every five swings, offering him water every few seconds and even using towels to fan him.

 

At one point, one of his handlers actually tied his shoes for him.

 

Castillo seemed to think of all of this was essential, changing shirts for every exercise and switching shoes, too. Apparently, his fielding shoes are not his hitting shoes.

 

Ultimately, though, it was a positive workout for the heavily muscled Castillo, even if some questions still remain.

 

[GD]

would like

[G-Snarls]

Throw $$ at

[ElNik2013]

Why throw money at this guy when the Jays have a full outfield for 2015...

[G-Snarls]

Rich and poor teams both have scored in the international free agent market and signed quality Japanese, Dominican and Cuban players in their mid 20's at zero prospect and draft pick cost

 

Why not us for once?

[Deadpool]

I, too, wear different shoes for fielding and hitting.

[ace3113]

Off topic, but if we're going to spend money on someone I hope it's Japanese pitcher Kenta Maeda. He's not at Tanaka's level but he looks pretty darn good. Some scouts are saying he's a likely 4 starter at best, but many of those same scouts also thought Tanaka was a likely 3 starter, possibly 2 max.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHYInoL0C6o

[G-Snarls]

Dodgers, Rangers, Reds, Yankees and A's have all made this market work

 

"It's just money"

 

Wish we had some

[dineke]

Rich and poor teams both have scored in the international free agent market and signed quality Japanese, Dominican and Cuban players in their mid 20's at zero prospect and draft pick cost

 

Why not us for once?

 

We score journeymen who turn into superstars. Don't get too greedy.

[Ziggyy108]

You guys are delusional if you honestly think Rogers is gonna spend a cent more on this team ..... Nope they don't give a f***. Payroll will be lower next year.

[labadee]

You guys are delusional if you honestly think Rogers is gonna spend a cent more on this team ..... Nope they don't give a f***. Payroll will be lower next year.

 

no one here actually thinks they would. don't get so angry

[Daniel Labude]

Why throw money at this guy when the Jays have a full outfield for 2015...

 

An aging bautista does not make a full outfield

[North of 60]

I don't think the cash from the McGuire trade will be enough for this guy...

[CJ-Freeway]

I don't think the cash from the McGuire trade will be enough for this guy...

 

hahaha good one.

[ElNik2013]

An aging bautista does not make a full outfield

 

 

Your sarcasm button needs to be turned on....

[G-Snarls]

[North of 60]

 

There were 0 from the Blue Jays because the Jays couldn't afford the airfare to send their scouts there.

[G-Snarls]

*cough*Hech*cough*

 

LOL oh yeah...

[GD]

Have many teams actually signed more than one defector? I know the Dodgers have signed Puig, Guerrero and Arrubenera, and the Reds have signed Chapman and Iglesias, but I dunno beyond that.

[G-Snarls]

Hech so forgettable

 

All glove SS that AA didn't even want playing in 2012 because he knew it would expose the bat and hurt his trade value

 

#TrueStory

Edited July 27, 2014 by G-Snarls

[G-Snarls]

[G-Snarls]

Cubs would be a great fit

 

Seems like an Epstein type of player/deal too

[HERPDERP]

I know you guys are thinking it, but we have no chance.

[G-Snarls]

I know you guys are thinking it, but we have no chance.

 

I have been thinking all along that we have no chance

 

Extend Melky instead

[Orgfiller]

The Cubs are just doing a lot of things right atm, their fanbase must be ecstatic to have a FO like that.

[Vincent]

The Cubs are just doing a lot of things right atm, their fanbase must be ecstatic to have a FO like that.

 

On pace for their 5th consecutive 60-70 win season, I'm sure their "fans" are ecstatic.

[G-Snarls]

The Cubs are just doing a lot of things right atm, their fanbase must be ecstatic to have a FO like that.

 

Dunno

 

They're building the nice farm system but I think many fans and even the FO expected better MLB results by now. They didn't plan on selling mid season this year and they ended up doing it. Theo was very open about how disappointed he was that they were still there.

[Orgfiller]

Dunno

 

They're building the nice farm system but I think many fans and even the FO expected better MLB results by now. They didn't plan on selling mid season this year and they ended up doing it. Theo was very open about how disappointed he was that they were still there.

 

They're doing a rebuild, and doing it the right way, by stacking the farm. I get that they might've expected to be doing better in the standing by now but they have a bunch of talent that's waiting to come up.

[G-Snarls]

Well that's it - the Cubs WILL eventually have a nice team. They have a smarter FO and probably more $ than the Astros so I'd bet on a Cubs playoff appearance long before an Astros one.

[KingKat]

Well that's it - the Cubs WILL eventually have a nice team. They have a smarter FO and probably more $ than the Astros so I'd bet on a Cubs playoff appearance long before an Astros one.

 

...and FWIW, their on-field product is better too. Not quite the scorched earth Astros approach. Both teams are finally starting to have some nice elements in place but we can't put more faith in the Cubs front office to making whatever investments needed to put the finishing touches. Who knows with the Astros?