When Luis Castillo took the mound in opposition to the Yankees final month, the 29-year-old beginning pitcher aced what many seen as his audition for the membership with the majors’ finest report.
Lower than 24 hours earlier than MLB’s commerce deadline, nonetheless, Castillo nonetheless got here by way of the visiting entrance of Yankee Stadium on Monday after the Reds traded him to the Mariners in trade for a haul of minor-league prospects only a couple days earlier.
“The Yankees have been positively one of many ones very ,” Castillo mentioned with the assistance of a translator earlier than making his debut in a Mariners uniform in dugout of the Mariners’ 7-2 loss to the Yankees on Monday night time in The Bronx.
The Yankees’ essential purpose main as much as Tuesday’s deadline is to bolster their rotation and injury-riddled bullpen — which was exasperated by the lack of Michael King for the season with an elbow damage. Castillo was considered Plan A, however the Yankees weren’t prepared to half with their prime prospect, shortstop Anthony Volpe, to get it accomplished, in line with The Publish’s Joel Sherman.
So common supervisor Brian Cashman pivoted to Plan B on Monday: Frankie Montas. The Yankees despatched their very own haul of prospects — JP Sears, Ken Waldichuk, Luis Medina and Cooper Bowman — to the Athletics to amass the Dominican hurler.
Opposite to the final time he confronted the Yankees, when he was nonetheless with the Reds, Castillo got here again to New York as a brand new rival pitcher within the American League. The Yankees have been understandably impressed with Castillo, who allowed one run in seven innings and struck out eight batters in that July 14 matchup, through which the Yankees misplaced 7-6 in 10 innings.
Along with throwing 17 first-pitch strikes, six of his strikeouts got here on the four-seam fastball. His fastball and changeup have been nearly untouchable, and the Yankees took discover. Castillo was on tempo for a no-hitter till Anthony Rizzo doubled down the right-field line within the sixth inning to place runners on second and third with one out.
When requested in regards to the transition from the rebuilding Reds to the wild-card-hunting Mariners, Castillo insinuated it was enterprise as regular and mentioned he’d give his all for his new staff.
“It feels good, I imply, you’re coming to a staff that's so near attending to that postseason,” he mentioned. “The one factor left is simply proceed doing what the staff has been doing and dealing exhausting and I’m certain we’ll get there.”
In 85 innings getting into Monday’s recreation, Castillo was 4-4 with a 2.86 ERA and 90 strikeouts. His bounce-back season comes after a tricky 2021 marketing campaign, over which he recorded a career-high 33 begins and compiled a career-worst 8-16 report. Castillo’s 16 losses have been essentially the most within the Nationwide League, whereas his 3.98 ERA was the second worst of his six-year MLB profession.
Seattle will now get to reap the advantages of their new starter, whereas the Yankees get a entrance row seat to his first outing in a brand new uniform.
“Clearly, I heard all of the rumors all through the entire journey,” Castillo mentioned. “I’ve heard that 5, six groups — a number of rumors that a number of groups in search of me. However I used to be all the time centered on doing my job and by chance [I was] traded right here to Seattle and I’m completely happy.”
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