Sox sign Rusney Castillo to 7-year/$72.5M deal (2014-2020)

[Snodgrass'Muff]

 
Unless I'm missing one, the last five long-term deals on which the Sox "did their diligence" were the second Beckett deal, Pedey, Lackey, Crawford, and Gonzalez.  Will even one of those deals have been worth the money by the time it's over?  And all of those guys were easy to scout!  It was that spotty (to be generous) history that led the team to stop doing long-term deals (and I haven't even mentioned Dice-K).  I'm not sure it's being inflammatory in the slightest to say that the team's recent history with long-term deals leaves something to be desired, such that any assertion that they've "diligenced" Castillo is not all that reassuring.
 
And, to be clear, I think this was probably a risk worth taking, since it cost them nothing but money to sign him, Dombrowski obviously thought a lot of him as well, etc.  I'm just saying that defending a long-term Red Sox deal on the ground that they've been looking into the player for a long time doesn't do much for me. 

 
Okay, you are missing or ignoring my point. Just because they don't announce it to the press that doesn't mean they haven't done due diligence on every single player they've acquired. It's their job to turn over every stone. In the case of a big contract, someone from the media is going to ask about the risk and they will throw out the "due diligence" line. In other words, it's meaningless and that they said it about Castillo has absolutely nothing to do with Carl Crawford (or Gonzalez, Pedroia, Beckett, or Lackey).
 
Pointing to Carl Crawford served only one purpose and it wasn't adding insight. Besides, even if they'd drawn the comparison themselves, they sign Castillo to half what Crawford is being paid.

 

[pdub]

Yeah, I don't think the Castillo signing is evidence of a shift in team offensive philosophy. I think the key issue is that power is not necessarily available on the market, hence why the Sox have to make different kinds of moves. Castillo merely represents a signing to fill the outfield without giving up prospects.
 
The Sox were in on Abreu last year and, knowing what they know now, I assume would have bid that extra $5M to sign him. Same way I am certain they'd trade for Stanton if he were clearly available. Its not a change in philosophy, just a sign that power is currently more of a scarce commodity.  

 

[Super Nomario]

 
I'm not particularly convinced that Gonzo won't turn out to be pretty close to value once we see how much inflation kicks in by the end of his deal. He's settling in as around a 3-4 WAR player and that's pretty much worth $21M/yr on the market. 

He's a 3-win player at 32, but there are 4 more years on that deal. The shape of his decline curve is important here, and he's always been a guy with old player's skills.

 

[TheoShmeo]

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2014/08/26/david-ortiz-may-back-lineup-wednesday/cP8ozhqGgtjNLbtCvV1ysJ/story.html
 

 
Castillo, a free agent from Cuba, was signed to a seven-year, $72.5 million deal last week. He has not played competitively in more than a year. The Sox are planning on him playing in some major league games next month . . .
 

Maybe I'm missing it doesn't seem to make a lot of sense to me to have Castillo get his feet wet on this stage after being off for over a year.  I mean, it would be fun to see him in Boston but I can't this being the best thing for him. 
 
Am I over thinking this?

 

[joe dokes]

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2014/08/26/david-ortiz-may-back-lineup-wednesday/cP8ozhqGgtjNLbtCvV1ysJ/story.html
 
Maybe I'm missing it doesn't seem to make a lot of sense to me to have Castillo get his feet wet on this stage after being off for over a year.  I mean, it would be fun to see him in Boston but I can't this being the best thing for him. 
 
Am I over thinking this?

 
I think this is one of those areas where even the higher-level conventional wisdom usually displayed here is guilty of not knowing what we're talking about. In the literally over-thinking dept., "some games" could be in the last homestand at the end of the season, which begins roughly 4 weeks from today. That's plenty of time to prepare for some relatively meaningless games.  But in the more general sense, what is the harm of a few games -- "here's Boston, here's Fenway" to, as you say, just get his feet wet. Maybe it helps him see where he is relative to where he needs to be.
 
This is not to single you out, but asuming we're not talking about no-brainers like pitching a guy with a blown-out elbow, or putting a torn-ACL guy in as a pinch-runner on Sept. 25, when we speculate "what's best for him" we are really out of our league.

 

[OCD SS]

If the Sox aren't going anywhere, I don't see the harm. Maybe he could get some PAs in the AFL, but otherwise having him get a sense of MLB quality pitching and evaluating him playing against top talent can only help his adjustment for next year.

 

[Mighty Joe Young]

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2014/08/26/david-ortiz-may-back-lineup-wednesday/cP8ozhqGgtjNLbtCvV1ysJ/story.html
 
Maybe I'm missing it doesn't seem to make a lot of sense to me to have Castillo get his feet wet on this stage after being off for over a year.  I mean, it would be fun to see him in Boston but I can't this being the best thing for him. 
 
Am I over thinking this?

 
 
Yes 
 
I see no harm at all - in fact it should benefit him to get some acclimation to the Show .. he will have been working out at Fort Myers for 3-4 weeks by the time he gets any game action. No one is going to care if he goes 3 for 15 - especially Castillo.
 
People just want a chance to see what kind of a player he is.
 
I mean, if his confidence is going to be destroyed by a week's worth of failure then he's not much of a professional athlete.

 

[LeoCarrillo]

If they're at all concerned about his psyche, they can always sit him against the occasional Cobb or Tillman. He probably wouldn't even know why. There will be plenty of callups and tomato cans to hit off during the last 2 weeks of the season.

 

[jscola85]

I think the Rusney contract signals a turn of strategy toward a more small-ball approach by the Sox.  As power numbers continue to drop around baseball, and Ks spike, the station to station approach becomes more and more difficult to score runs with.  I think we will see a lineup featuring a large number of fairly speedy, dynamic components (Castillo, Betts, Pedroia, Victorino), where previous teams were more reliant on a mix of  OBP and power guys (like Nava, Bellhorn, Mueller supporting Ortiz, Manny, Napoli).  When you struggle to feild more than one 20 HR hitter, it becomes imperative to generate offense by other means than the Earl Weaver approach.

 
Except this doesn't really jive with the reality right now.  The O's, Brewers, Tigers, A's, Angels, Giants and Nats all look to be playoff teams this year and all of them sit in the top half of the league in ISO.  Only the Royals, Cards and Mariners are competing for the playoffs playing small ball (ie, low ISO) and even the Mariners are 21st despite playing in an ISO-killing ballpark.  The Royals are doing it with ridiculously good defense and bullpen, while the Cards are kind of doing it with smoke and mirrors (-10 run differential).

 

[Reverend]

 
Maybe. But I think it could also be as simple as the fact that there as very few places left for a team to flex their wallet anymore. The Sox can't overspend in the draft anymore, can't outbid for NBP players anymore and FAs worth spending money on are harder to find by the year. While people may cite last year as a new motto of going shorter at high dollars for mid level guys, I don't see evidence that it wasn't a strategy born of their position in the contention and payroll cycle. Players that can be had for only money -with no restrictions - are going to skyrocket in value. someone will get burned eventually, but these contracts will only continue up as teams have more money to spend. 

 
Cherington has also stated this explicitly. If you follow the implications, with the shift towards teams trying to lock up talent earlier by buying out the arb years in exchange for the first few free agent years, you end up with a radically changed market for the players in FA--that is to say, we can expect to see a different population of which players hit FA and when which means how people value players in FA has to change.
 
Basically, the FA market is evolving and, if I read the tea leaves correctly, the teams are not yet confident that they know how to value players in the market. Cherington's comments that they researched the last ten years of deadline trades and suggested that they were surprised to find that the sellers didn't do as well as had been thought would lend credence to this idea. In the context of uncertainty, I can see how getting a potential piece for just money could seem like a solid bet.

 

[HriniakPosterChild]

 
Cherington has also stated this explicitly. If you follow the implications, with the shift towards teams trying to lock up talent earlier by buying out the arb years in exchange for the first few free agent years, you end up with a radically changed market for the players in FA--that is to say, we can expect to see a different population of which players hit FA and when which means how people value players in FA has to change.

 
As an agent who likes to take elite talent to FA, Scott Boras has to love this new marketplace.

 

[CaskNFappin]

His nickname is La Pantera aka The Panther....so there's that

 

[mabrowndog]

Dan Szymborski put together some projections for him in this Insider piece:
 

 

 
ZiPS projection system translations for Rusney Castillo back up Boston's belief that he improves the team's fortunes considerably. While the ZiPS 2015 projection for Castillo at .279/.331/.413 with 15 home runs isn't eye-popping in the way that Abreu's or Puig's numbers are, his above-average defense in center helps push him to a 3.0 WAR, the contribution of a very solid regular. Looking for parallels in recent history, the top comps in ZiPS include such names as Marlon Byrd, Mike Devereaux, Vernon Wells, Chad Curtis, and Aaron Rowand. Each player on that list provided significant value during their primes. (And yes, that's true for Wells, which is sometimes easy to forget given the terrible trade in which he was involved later on.)

 

[mabrowndog]

Also, Rusney has officially reported to Fort Myers.

 

[Moosey]

Personally I am expecting his scouted speed to translate into more stolen bases.  I am hoping he has good instincts on the base paths and can push those numbers into the 30 or 40s.

 

[P'tucket rhymes with...]

 
 
As an agent who likes to take elite talent to FA, Scott Boras has to love this new marketplace.
 

Don't want to take the thread off track, but I don't think this is necessarily true.  He might be faced with having to talk more pre-arb, league minimum guys into walking away from $40-50 millionish deals that take them through a year or two of free agency--not an easy task--and a much tougher market for the non-elite guys he's always done very well by in the past.

 

[E5 Yaz]

GordonEdes Gordon Edes
Rusney Castillo has obtained his work visa and is eligible to play in games, according to Juan Perez, CEO of Roc Nation Sports

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

So where do they put him? I'd assume whichever league has the most games left?

Given his age and contract I would guess Pawtucket. Remember Ben mentioned that he views AAA as an "extension" of the big league club. Plus I wouldn't mind seeing everyone's collective heads explode when Henry Owens is pitching to Blake Swihart while Castillo is manning CF.

 

[ivanvamp]

Given his age and contract I would guess Pawtucket. Remember Ben mentioned that he views AAA as an "extension" of the big league club. Plus I wouldn't mind seeing everyone's collective heads explode when Henry Owens is pitching to Blake Swihart while Castillo is manning CF.

 
Pawsox games might be more interesting on those days than what's happening at Fenway Park.

 

[Savin Hillbilly]

So where do they put him? I'd assume whichever league has the most games left?

 
That would be the American League, correct?

 

[Curll]

GordonEdes Gordon Edes
Rusney Castillo has obtained his work visa and is eligible to play in games, according to Juan Perez, CEO of Roc Nation Sports

He must come out to bat to this song
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iE-at65LjDA

 

[DennyDoyle'sBoil]

Soxprospects.com says the Red Sox have listed an outfielder to be determined in their Arizona Fall League preliminary roster.

http://news.soxprospects.com/2014/08/marrero-and-coyle-headed-to-arizona.html

 

[theapportioner]

He must come out to bat to this song
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iE-at65LjDA

 
If they're going to do that, then he should also bat shirtless and barefoot.

 

[Scoots McBoots]

RUSNEY CRUSH.

 

[Curll]

 
If they're going to do that, then he should also bat shirtless and barefoot.

I want Fenway to scream in unison, "RUSNEY! CRUUUUUUUSH!" at every AB.'
 
Wouldn't mind if he was accompanied by a Lana look alike, either.
 

 
God help me if Steen and Rusney are ever on the same roster together.

 

[The Talented Allen Ripley]

That's enough wrestling talk on the main board, thanks.

 

[HomeRunBaker]

 
Well, yeah, but don't you think they will give him some minor league ABs before that, considering he hasn't seen live pitching in over a year? I would think they put him in the minors until their seasons end then bring him up to get a taste and a handful of games in September, then have him play AFL. 

4 days in FL, 2 weeks in PAW, 2 weeks in Boston?

I'd imagine something like this makes the most sense on $everal levels.

 

[Hank Scorpio]

 
Each Major League organization is required to provide six players subject to the following requirements:

• All Triple-A and Double-A players are eligible, provided the players are on at least a Double-A level roster no later than Aug. 1.
• One player below the Double-A level is allowed per Major League team.
• One foreign player is allowed, as long as the player does not reside in a country that participates in winter ball, as part of the Caribbean Confederation or the Australian winter league.
• No players with more than one year of credited Major League service as of August 31 are eligible, except a team may select one player picked in the most recently concluded Major League Rule 5 Draft.
• To be eligible, players on Minor League disabled lists must be activated at least 45 days before the conclusion of their respective seasons.

 
AFL eligibility rules.
 
Would he be allowed under this? The first and fourth rule seem to be somewhat in conflict with each other. Players with MLB experience are allowed, but only if they're assigned to AAA? 

 

[Darnell's Son]

I think the third rule is all that really matters here. He's a resident of Haiti, which is not part of CC.

I'm sure they could get a waiver if need be and of they can't they can send him to winter ball somewhere.

Yeah, the third rule seems to apply to him the best.

 

[mabrowndog]

For those interested, there's a thread covering the Arizona Fall League.

 

[soxhop411]

Why is Mookie still playing CF if he will not be playing that position next year? (Now that Castillo is here)

 

[Plympton91]

Why is Mookie still playing CF if he will not be playing that position next year? (Now that Castillo is here)

1. There's no guarantee Castillo won't need time in AAA
2. There's no guarantee Castillo won't play RF or LF instead
3. Betts trade value is highest if he shows himself to be a very good CF
4. There's no one else currently on the 2014 roster who can play CF adequately
5. You probably don't want to jerk Betts around to a new position again in the same year

Any other reasons necessary?

 

[Snodgrass'Muff]

Why is Mookie still playing CF if he will not be playing that position next year? (Now that Castillo is here)

 
Because they want him to be able to play center field next year in addition to where ever else he ends up playing? Or perhaps because they might be leaning toward Castillo in right and Betts in center? Or because that's where he fits on the current major league roster and they aren't worried about him needing to move down the defensive spectrum next spring? Or because they don't have a better option to play center until Castillo makes the major league roster later in the season? Or... well, the possible reasons could probably go on for a while. Take your pick.

 

[HomeRunBaker]

Why is Mookie still playing CF if he will not be playing that position next year? (Now that Castillo is here)

Where (else) would we play him?!?!?

#beatdeadhorse

 

[nighthob]

Where (else) would we play him?!?!?

Point guard

 

[wade boggs chicken dinner]

Scouting report from the 2011 World Cup by Sir Brian Farley, who was the BoSox Euro Scouting Director for five years: http://espn.go.com/blog/boston/red-sox/post/_/id/40071/coach-recalls-castillos-emergence-in-2011. Here's part:
 

Castillo played right field for Cuba in the Rotterdam tournament, Farley said, but was in center field in Panama for what turned into his coming out party. Castillo hit .512 with eight extra-base hits, including two home runs, in 10 games. Farley’s Dutchmen beat Castillo’s Cubans in the championship game, but the young center fielder left a lasting impression.

“He was a very difficult out for us, that’s the first thing that comes to mind,’’ Farley said by phone Friday from his home in Zuid Scharwoude, a suburb about 25 miles north of Amsterdam.

“He led off in both tournaments, set the table extremely well, and had a disciplined strike zone; he was really focused on getting on base.’’

Farley was surprised to hear that Castillo is now listed at 205 pounds, despite his 5-foot-9 frame. That’s considerably bigger than when he saw him.

“He had surprising power for his size,’’ he said. “Obviously, he was very fast, but he also was strong, with short leverage and a short swing. He was very tough to beat with a fastball; he was very quick in the zone.’’

Sounds like Mookie Betts redux. 
 
Would be fun to watch them both together assuming they both pan out.

 

[benhogan]

 
AFL eligibility rules.
 
Would he be allowed under this? The first and fourth rule seem to be somewhat in conflict with each other. Players with MLB experience are allowed, but only if they're assigned to AAA? 

if the Sox have to petition the AFL for an exception I can't imagine the people that run the AFL would turn down all the extra attendance from reporters/fans, media attention from ESPN and NESN,  and internet chatter on every single Rusney Castillo play....

 

[Plympton91]

So 1 or 2 partial games in the GCL, then on to hopefully Salem's first round series for a couple more later in the week. Hopefully at least one upper level affiliate makes the second round and gives him 3 or 4 more in AA and AAA. Then, with maybe 8 minor league games under his belt, several only partial games, he plays in Boston for the final 2 weeks? Yikes. Should be fun to follow though.

 

[Night of the Keyboard]

1. There's no guarantee Castillo won't need time in AAA
2. There's no guarantee Castillo won't play RF or LF instead
3. Betts trade value is highest if he shows himself to be a very good CF
4. There's no one else currently on the 2014 roster who can play CF adequately
5. You probably don't want to jerk Betts around to a new position again in the same year
Any other reasons necessary?

Mookie's value is already extremely high as there are only a few teams where he wouldn't start at 2B. Unfortunately, the Sox are one of those teams.

 

[Darnell's Son]

So 1 or 2 partial games in the GCL, then on to hopefully Salem's first round series for a couple more later in the week. Hopefully at least one upper level affiliate makes the second round and gives him 3 or 4 more in AA and AAA. Then, with maybe 8 minor league games under his belt, several only partial games, he plays in Boston for the final 2 weeks? Yikes. Should be fun to follow though.

He's gonna get to see a whole lot of the east coast in his first couple weeks as a professional.

 

[mabrowndog]

He's DHing and leading off for GCL. His first PA is moments away.
 
EDIT - He takes 2 pitches, then singles to LF. Deflected off the shortstop's glove. Cue the Future Hall of Famer thread.
 
EDIT - He's caught stealing 2nd. Cue the He's a Bust! thread.

 

[I am an Idiot]

He's DHing and leading off for GCL. His first PA is moments away.
 
EDIT - He takes 2 pitches, then singles to LF. Deflected off the shortstop's glove. Cue the Future Hall of Famer thread.
 
EDIT - He's caught stealing 2nd. Cue the He's a Bust! thread.

Rusney Castillo - what do we have here?

 

[LogansDad]

An OBP of 1.000 is meaningless if you get thrown out stealing every time you are on base.  God this guy sucks.  What a waste of resources.
 
(Am I doing it right?)

 

[Over Guapo Grande]

He's DHing and leading off for GCL. His first PA is moments away.
 
EDIT - He takes 2 pitches, then singles to LF. Deflected off the shortstop's glove. Cue the Future Hall of Famer thread.
 
EDIT - He's caught stealing 2nd. Cue the He's a Bust! thread.

Ellsbury would have had it easily.

 

[mabrowndog]

EPIC SLUMP ALERT
 


Nick Cafardo ‏@nickcafardo 7m
Rusney Castillo took a called 3rd K on three pitches in 2nd AB stranding runners at 1st and 2nd. Swung and missed on a high FB before K
 



Scott Lauber ‏@ScottLauber 8m

Castillo took first pitch, fouled off second, then caught looking by Luis Cedeno, Yankees' 19-year-old righty

 

[LeoCarrillo]

Classic Sox FO fail. Why didn't they just keep Crawford?

 

[mabrowndog]

Damn this organization and their slow hook. I mean, the guy's obviously totally exhausted.
 

Scott Lauber ‏@ScottLauber 15m
That's it for Castillo, 1-for-2 with single, caught stealing, strikeout. Saw six pitches. #RedSox

 
Six? SIX??? They're going to destroy him with that workload.

 

[RG33]

EPIC SLUMP ALERT
 


Nick Cafardo ‏@nickcafardo 7m
Rusney Castillo took a called 3rd K on three pitches in 2nd AB stranding runners at 1st and 2nd. Swung and missed on a high FB before K

Not clutch. Awful signing.

 

[Mike F]

It's going to be tough for Eric to 'cherry pick' from
this sample. I said tough not impossible.

 

[mauidano]

Package him in a deal.