Phillies, Castro Agree to Terms
Posted by Amanda Orr, Tue, November 24, 2009 03:25 PM | Comments: 88
Posts
The Phillies reportedly agreed to a deal with utility infielder Juan Castro, pending a physical. The deal is for one year with a club option for 2011. The deal might not be officially announced until next week.
Castro will fill Eric Bruntlett’s spot on the roster. The 37-year old batted .277 in 112 at-bats with the Los Angeles Dodgers last season. Castro was given a minor league contract worth $700,000 in 2009. If the deal is official, it is unlikely to exceed that price.
Posts: 0 Andrew
Wow Bruntlett better look out. There is competetion now.
Posted: 03:38 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Geoff
Um, Bruntlett was taken off the 40-man roster, hes gone.
Posted: 03:41 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Havoc
kind of got that eh… feeling about this one, but I guess it will give them some options. He seems to be an improvement over the beard at least.
Posted: 03:43 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 PSUjoe
I think this would close the book on Derosa since I can’t see the Phils taking a chance on him full time at third.
Posted: 03:49 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Geoff
Well, good. Thats one need met.
Posted: 03:50 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 JeffS
True, glad a need has been met on the cheap. Wonder if he’s at least good enough for Charlie to use once a week to spell Chase or JRoll.
Posted: 04:01 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 JeffS
I meant that last comment in terms of being good enough to convince Charlie to actually use him, and feel comfortable doing so, instead of letting the bench rot except for PH like last year.
Posted: 04:03 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Geoff
He hit .277 last year in that role…so thatll get him two starts a week (one for chase, one of jroll).
Posted: 04:06 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Geoff
it shoudl at least, should…
Posted: 04:07 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Tavian
Castro is a lifetime .233 hitter with little power. He is probably an improvement over Bruntlett, but not a significant one. He has a lot (14 years) of experience as a utility player. I trust Ruben Jr.
Posted: 04:15 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Ed R.
Castro can also play 3rd base. He played 8 games there last year.
Posted: 04:19 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Geoff
Yeah, plus. He is the 24th or 25th man on the roster. So, liek Don always says, what more do you want for a guy making not much more than the minumum.
Posted: 04:19 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Tavian
TOMAS PEREZ WHERE ARE YOU ?????? Tomas has a higher lifetime batting average than Juan Castro, more power and is younger. Maybe we could get him for an even cheaper price. ANd, oh yeah, he did not play in the majors last year. Plus Tomas is a switch hitter and mastered the “Pie-in-the-Face” routine.
Posted: 04:20 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Havoc
Yeah guess this would mean no Derosa unless he’s playing third full time, but It could be good if the Phils are saving that money to make a run at Beltre for third and maybe some top free agent arms.
Posted: 04:33 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Geoff
One year deal with a club option for a second.
Posted: 04:41 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 BS
Can’t hit, doesn’t walk, doesn’t steal, strikes out a lot… sounds a lot like bruntlett, except he could at least steal a base or two
Posted: 05:07 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Manny
Bruntlett 2.0
I like it.
Posted: 05:17 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Andrew
Bruntlett gone? I am canceling my season tickets.
Posted: 05:21 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 George
Hopefully, Chan Ho Park will re-sign, so we’ll at least have one beard on the team.
Posted: 05:33 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Phan in TN
Wow David Bell better look out. There is competition now.
Posted: 05:52 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Lucky
Dude, what the fu*k! Our first signing this season is JUAN CASTRO? Hes a bum! I would have loved to have kept Bruntlett over this piece of shit. With all of the upgrading that were trying to do to this club, why worry about replacing Bruntlett now? Couldn’t that have came last, when all the ”shitty picks” were left in free agency? I mean, cause he is a shitty pick.
Posted: 06:31 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Geoff
HE IS THE 25th MAN ON THE ROSTER, HE WILL NOT MAKE MUCH IN BASEBALL TERMS, WHAT DO YOU EXPECT FROM THAT? Its a need, they addressed it, fine. Good. It was always going to be a guy on the cheap.
Posted: 06:34 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 griffin
Castro should have been given an invite to spring training not a guaranteed contract as the first free agent signing of the season.
There are many better (and possibly cheaper) options available so why Castro and why now?
Posted: 06:36 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Phantastic
Lucky I couldn’t agree anymore with you. I too would have rather just kept Bruntlett than sign Castro
Posted: 06:36 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Geoff
Better, but not cheaper. Ill bet they really got this guy cheap. I am FINE with this signing. DeRosa is going to get paid as a starter, that was always the case. If the Phils sign him it will be to start.
Posted: 06:40 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 psujoe
Bruntlett was awful. He lost the confiedence of his manager and fellow players Bye, bye. I think the Phils could’ve done better than Castro, but he’s a well liked player and a decent fielder. Hopefully the $$$$ is being used to sign a top reliefer, 3b and possibly a starter.
Posted: 06:40 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Geoff
I wouldve like Uribe but Uribe might want more PT than we could give him.
Posted: 06:40 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Lucky
If they wanted to stay competitive, and upgrade over bruntlett they should have signed Garciaparra
Posted: 06:42 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 griffin
This from Baseball Prospectus’ Joe Sheehan: “at his peak Castro was a good enough defensive SS to be a credible starter despite his limp bat. Now, he should not longer even be on a roster.”
Posted: 06:44 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 griffin
This from Baseball Prospectus’ Joe Sheehan: “at his peak Castro was a good enough defensive SS to be a credible starter despite his limp bat. Now, he should no longer even be on a roster.”
Posted: 06:45 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 griffin
Woops, sorry for the double post.
Posted: 06:46 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Geoff
Jeez. ITS A FREAKING BENCH UTILITY PLAYER! What is wrong with you people! Who cares? If he sucks, you can get another one during the season. Hes better than Bruntlett and Cairo. Hes cheap, and it saves money to be used on OTHER pieces.
Posted: 06:49 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 JJFritz
Juan Castro?? Seriously, though. I hope this signing isn’t based solely on his performance off the bench in L.A. He played on a team that hit pitchers so hard that by the time he would get a chance off the bench, teams were using their mop-up pitchers that struggled themselves. Yeah, that seems like a good reason to sign someone. Lifetime .233 hitter — one year of .277 off the bench, limited usage on a team of L.A. caliper… Just doesn’t worth the risk, especially at his age. No offense to Juan, maybe — hopefully– it will work out. But, if we’re really looking at going deep into October again next year, we need younger with more talent, someone who can produce more effectively, and more consistently. I pray that Amaro has something HUGE planned to counteract this and make it seem okay. I’m just not sold on Castro to be the Godsend-backup up the middle. There has to be better options….
Posted: 06:52 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 psujoe
Phils weren’t going to spend more than a million on a bench player when they have other more pressing needs. I’ll reserve judgement when the final off-season acquisitions are completed. Seriously though, they better have gotten him for cheap because Omar Vizquel is superior, IMO. Viz cost $1.375.
Posted: 07:04 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 griffin
The problem with this signing is that it is a guaranteed contract. If the Phils cut him in spring training they still have to pay him.
If the Phils brought him to spring training as an invitee and then he earned a roster spot, then fine. But why guarantee him a contract?
Posted: 07:07 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Lucky
Geoff,
Who cares if hes a utilty guy?? Are you serious? Listen to yourself. Its not the fact that he’s a utilty player, its the fact that this is THE FIRST SIGNING of the 2010 season, and the choice was horrible as Bruntlett himself. This is almost like going deep sea fishing, expecting a nice size fish, and reeling in a fish stick. Im sorry but this just caught me off guard. Juan Castro would still have been available long after we addressed our ”priorities” first.
Posted: 07:08 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 psujoe
Griffin, Dodgers would’ve resigned him well before spring training. They were in negotiations with him as well.
Posted: 07:13 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 The Dipsy
This news is completely underwhelming.
The Dipsy
Posted: 07:27 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 psujoe
Anyone else here thing Omar Vizquel would’ve been a superior signing?
Posted: 07:28 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Ed R.
Who cares if he was the first or last signing of the season? He is a utility player, that is all. Bench players in baseball are not like bench players in basketball where your 6th guy could probably be a starter on a lot of teams. And for the record, we already have that in Ben Francisco. Castro is a versatile fielder who can play 3 positions, can play sufficient defense and pinch run. And to be annoyed that they didn’t just break the bank to sign a bench player is crazy. In case you haven’t noticed, no one worth a darn has signed yet. There is a reason for that, good players want to wait it out and see how much they can get. That’s the nature of the business.
Posted: 07:36 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Manny
Why did we sign Castro “so early”? Cause the Dodgers wanted him, too
Posted: 07:43 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 psujoe
Ed R. Do you like Castro more than Vizquel or is Viz too expensive for 1.375?
Posted: 07:44 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Geoff
Some of you guys are the typical negative fans here, like they have no clue what theyre doing.
And, you dont know anything about baseball then if youre all upset that hes the first signing. Usually a few of these lesser guys sign independently before the big boys sign. Who cares when he signs? In what order? Its the offseason! Its not like theyre losing games right now because they signed this guy, they havent even got going in reloading this team.
Posted: 07:45 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Ed R.
Personally I like Vizquel more but I don’t think any bench player is worth 1.375 mil. But that is me personally. For how often a bench player is used, I’d prefer the extra coin go to a pitcher.
Posted: 07:50 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 karen
Does anyone understand this? Honestly, Beardo at least has the triple play on his side……I am lost, this is not power of the bench that I can see.
Posted: 09:00 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Lucky
Were not typical neggative fans…Like Karen said, were lost & confused about the news.
Who cares if the Dodgers were close to signing him, they should have.
Posted: 09:36 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 George
I’d like to point out that Vizquel signed with someone else for 1.385 million. That means the Phils would have had to pay even MORE to get him. Castro is old, but remember, Vizquel is even older!
The remark about Castro’s performance being helped by the Dodger’s lineup is completely irrelevent. If this were a real argument, Bruntlett should have hit better after Howard, Utley, Ibanez, Werth, etc. had destroyed the other team’s bullpen.
The team needed a versatile player, and Bruntlett was no longer up to snuff, if he ever had been. It was time to try someone else. Sure, if they’d waited, they might have ended up with someone better. They also may have paid more for an injury prone veteran like Garciaparra, who really can’t play SS very well anymore. Or they may have ended up with someone worse for the same money as Castro.
Remember, too, how little people griped in 2008, when Bruntlett hit a lusty .217. Castro’s a sub, for crying out loud. You don’t break the bank for a sub. Give the front office a break.
Posted: 09:43 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 Rusty Stab
Here is the lowdown on Juan Castro…..And it will show the brilliance of Ruben Amaro, Jr. Juan Castro is related to the Castros who run Cuba. Soon, all types of prospects from Cuba will be allowed to play in the USA. Juan Castro will influence the Cuban leadership to get the best players signed with Philly, just like Florida gets the best Puerto Rican and Dominican prospects. This has to be the ONLY reason why we are wasting our time on Juan Castro. I can think of no other reason.
Posted: 09:49 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 joedad
He is Miguel Cairo’s replacement. He signed a MINOR-LEAGUE deal.
Posted: 10:08 PM on November 24, 2009
Posts: 0 jrollpatrol08
psujoe i agree i wanted vizquel as a backup option as well. i thought we already had castro’s twin brothers in the system–ozuna and cairo. is castro a step ahead of those bums? hardly
i thought hairston jr would be at least considered for this job. guess i was wrong…
i wouldnt get too worked up over this people. there were some other guys i thought would have worked better as the utility guy…but if the dude does have a halfway decent season then he would be worth the cheap investment…
although come playoff time its gonna feel very familiar. ‘phillies are down 5 to 4 here in the eighth inning…they gotta get somethin going here offensively…to lead off the inning we have a pinch-hitter…juan castro??’
sounds like a .230 career hitter and a hispanic version of bruntlett
Posted: 10:34 PM on November 24, 2009