18
2011
Thoughts On Luis Castillo’s Release And Reactions
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The New York Mets made it official and announced that they have released 35-year-old second baseman Luis Castillo this morning. Castillo had one year left on his contract that will pay him $6 million dollars, but that doesn’t seem to matter considering all things.
Here are some comments made by Sandy Alderson while speaking to reporters:
“After a long evaluation during spring training, after consulting with Terry and the coaching staff, I made a recommendation to ownership in the best interest of the organization and Louie that he be released, and ownership approved.”
“I think there were a variety” of reasons for the release. Obviously, we wanted to see how he looked physically from an offensive standpoint, defensively. You know, I think Luis made a strong effort, but we just felt given our other options and where we are headed as an organization this was in our mutual interest.”
“I don’t think there’s any question that there’s some linkage between his situation and a perception of the Mets that has existed to this point. That’s something that was taken into account. At some point, you have to make an organizational decision that goes beyond just an ability to play or not play.”
Basically, he heard the noise and made the move based on that and not because of his performance which is obviously better than the rest of the field battling for the second base job. In a way, I’m glad he listened to what the fanbase was saying, but lets not make a habit of that.
A few of the players weighed in on Castillo’s release before the game,
“He’s a very god friend of mine. He’s close to me. When you see somebody go, it’s going to hurt. He was playing good. It’s not like he was playing terrible. I didn’t even have the chance to say goodbye. I’m surprised a little bit, because he was playing good baseball.” ~ Jose Reyes
“This is the way baseball is. This is what the team wanted and there is nothing else we can do about it. I spent a lot of time watching everybody, and Castillo was actually playing excellent. He was doing great at the plate and looked better in the field. This is what the team wanted. That’s baseball, I wish Castillo good luck.” ~ Carlos Beltran
Where does this leave the Mets now?
Defensively they are worse off without Castillo and Ruben Tejada who was sent packing a week ago. Offensively, only Dan Murphy has proven that he can hit at this level. You can’t say that about Justin Turner, Brad Emaus and Luis Hernandez.
With that said, Turner will most likely go back to the minors because he has options left. Murphy will stick in a utility role. Hernandez is out of options and could stick, but very unlikely. Emaus will get the job simply because the front office have put a lot of stock into him based on his minor league numbers.
Alderson refused to name a favorite during the game, but after his visit to the broadcast booth, Keith Hernandez said that it was apparent Emaus has been the chosen one from the day the Mets picked him up.
Putting the reasons for Castillo’s release aside for the moment, how much confidence do you have in the second base situation as it stands right now?
Are you as confident in Brad Emaus as the organization seems to be?
I happen to feel that we need to start looking at other teams as they cut their rosters down and see if a better option might still be available out there.
I’m glad Castillo is gone - It was the right move - I wanted him gone.
But I’m very leery of what we have now in Emaus, Turner, Murphy and Hernandez. I’m just not feeling it.
Oh, and by the way, I wish Ruben Tejada wasn’t brushed away as quickly as he was. As young as he is, all the others couldn’t match him defensively and he was hitting the ball with more authority at the plate.
Lets hear what you have to say.
About the Author: Joe DeCaro
I'm a lifelong Mets fan who loves writing and talking about the Amazins' 24/7. From the Miracle in 1969 to the magic of 1986, and even the near misses in '73 and '00, I've experienced it all - the highs and the lows. I started Mets Merized Online in 2005 to feed my addiction. Follow me on Twitter @metsmerized.
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|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Mets | 15 | 23 | .395 | 6.0 |
| Marlins | 11 | 30 | .268 | 11.5 |
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Joe, Tejada is supposedly the 2012 insurance for the possible departure of Reyes. You discounted that as a reason for the Mets move. Also, I’m of the view that Ruben really hasn’t proved himself more than Dal Maxvill or Eddie Brinkman. Check out their career numbers. Baaaad!!!
I understand that, but I feel letting Reyes go would be a huge mistake. I wasn’t thinking in terms of Reyes regarding Tejada, but simply felt he was the best defensive second baseman this spring and was hitting the ball better than last season when he was rushed up. In the end, I see Havens as our 2B of the future, but speaking solely for the 2011 season, Tejada was hitting no worse than any of the other candidates and he blew all of them out of the water defensively. I’m betting we see him again unless the Mets make a trade. They may be underestimating the value of defense up the middle, but after a few tough losses due to shoddy play, I’m betting Tejada will get the call some time in May and that the no-field/mediocre-bat choise will be cut or benched.
In my mind, the Mets would make a bad, bad move if they let Reyes or Wright go. But sometimes there’s no accounting for taste and I’m not yet familiar with Sandy’s views. I’d like to see Jose and David play their entire career in a Mets uniform. Both their baseball play and their value to the community are huge.
You forgot about Hu.
“I’m glad Castillo is gone – It was the right move – I wanted him gone.”
Ditto.
I think long term Tejada is the guy for 2b at until Havens can show he is past his injuries. Tejada needs to show he has nothing left to learn at AAA so the Mets decide it’s time to bring him up hopefully sooner rather than later.
Emaus may be the Opening day 2b but that doesn’t mean he will be the 2b all season long.
The real audition for 2b starts in April. Let’s see who wins.
Hey, want a good laugh? This is from Brad Penny on Twitter:
BradPenny “Luis Castillo is a good player. I think the mets made a bad move.”
I saw that too – ironic coming from a guy classified as a “good pitcher” was based on a first half. castillo is judged on being a good player from like 2003. Oh yeah, and 2009 when he batted .303 on a team that couldn’t hit their way out of a paper bag. He was akin to putting a mansion in a trailer park
Joe,
interesting points of view but I’m going to disagree with you on a couple of things:
“Emaus will get the job simply because the front office have put a lot of stock into him based on his minor league numbers.”
Isn’t the amount of stock an organization has put in a player the reason a lot of players stay around. Louie stayed around longer than he should have and Ollie, as of now, is still here because of the stock the organization had put in their respective salaries. Angel Pagan will be a starting outfielder for the team because of the stock put in 1 1/2 seasons worth of stats. I trust the people who are around baseball 24/7 and have seen Emaus play more than any of us have to make the decisions. Do they miss? Sure. But Castillo had turned into a careless, terrible defensive player and was almost a second pitcher in the lineup.
“Oh, and by the way, I wish Ruben Tejada wasn’t brushed away as quickly as he was. As young as he is, all the others couldn’t match him defensively and he was hitting the ball with more authority at the plate.”
I believe Tejada will be a good baseball player one day, but why put him somewhere he isn’t ready? Sure he was crushing the ball against the non-roster invitees and AA pitchers most guys see early in spring training, but that doesn’t mean he’s ready to hit everyday in the major leagues. We as Mets fans need to take deep breaths and remember that rushing these prospects turns into years of frustration. Wright, Reyes, Murphy, Thole, and even Davis got a hearty number of minor league at-bats. I like that the Mets are so committed to allowing Tejada the proper development he deserves.
Lastly, I think your idea about the Mets keeping their eyes on players who may be released in an interesting one given their current financial situation. The team the releases them will absorb the salary so the Mets would only have to make room for a minimum salary…interesting to see if anyone of note will get cut and, if so, would the Mets be willing to bring in another 2B
In my opinion they sacked the wrong one – Oliver Perez was the one who should have been gone long ago. Yet the powers that be, won’t get rid of him because of his salary. Is that anyway to rate a player? Luis was just fine – Oliver is still here. They got it backward.
he is still here because he has not forced the issue yet, and there is a slim chance he could still be useful (that is, he is still competing for a job). They are giving the evaluation as much time as they can, which is the prudent thing to do.
as long as he eventually gets cut, it really doesn’t matter when they do it.
nothing to do with salary, in that they are paying him regardless. But it is a fact of life that expensive guys usually get a longer look (more chances), being veterans and due to the large commitment.
Does anyone know the REAL difference between Emaus and Castillo?
About 5 Mil!
Both were high OBP low BA players with suspect fielding and very little pop.
Emaus was taken over him because he is cheaper and younger which means Emaus has a higher ceiling.
But they will essentially be replaceing Castillo with a cheaper younger Castillo.
That is if Emaus actually wins the job from Hernandez.
I don’t really have a porblem with the move of Castillo NOR the idea of Emaus as his replacement.
Just feel if they knew they were leaning to replace Castillo they should have got a better replacement option than Emaus.
Other than the high OBP/low K aspect, I don’t think they are at all similar.
emaus is said to have some power (slappy none), and emaus is not a speed guy (slappy used to be). And emaus is not reported to be a defensive whiz at 2B (castillo was, but now has no range).
You got the salary difference right, but they are paying castillo anyway so a moot point.
there real difference? 11 years in age. And as you correctly note, Emaus has more upside, and the possibility of being around for years to come.
Emaus’ power is kind of mythological and is a product of merely looking at SLG.
He hits about .050 points lower than Castillo though which kind of negates that slight uptick in SLG.
I wasn’t suggesting they are EXACT Matches only that in essence we are replacing a No Glove No Hit 2B with a No Glove No Hit 2B that is younger.
The only thing Emaus brings is because he is younger he might actually have a chance to get better at some point.
That may be enough but at this point in Space/Time all we did was replace Apples with Apples.
Metsie, your point is not without merit, but I invite you, and everyone else who feels Castillo can still work his way on base, to notice he has never walked more than 78 times in a season in his entire career, and still only more than 70 twice. Castillo’s high OBP in years past has been due to his ability to handle the bat, not walk. That ability is all but gone and with it is any “fear” pitchers may have had of that ability.
Pitchers will be more than willing to pump one down the middle with no fear of anything more than a four-hopper that may possibly find a hole. So while his obvious and steep decline in batting skills won’t effect his batting eye, it will certainly effect how frequently he can use it’s discretionary talents.
Yipes. The above comment is I, everyone’s favorite “saberhead,” forgetting to log out a pseudonym not used for MMO.
Are you trying to tell us your BxBoy? LOL
In the interest of full disclosure, that’s my dad. I’m visiting my folks.
LOL no prob dude, I fully understand how cookies work!
I wasn’t suggesting Castillo has any magic to work…
All I was suggesting was the cutting of castillo in favor of Emaus is pretty much a lateral move with Age and potential to get better the only difference.
Well, that’s a huge difference. If one player is getting worse and the other is 11 years younger and can get better, I don’t quite see how it’s a lateral move. Maybe this season (and subsequent seasons) might mirror a previous All-Star season Castillo had at the plate, Castillo is very far removed from that, and I can hardly see him topping a .320 OBP as a full-time player anymore. Emaus has the edge in all facets of offense. I hardly see their 2011 projected outputs similar at all.
It’s lateral if the younger guy doesn’t actually get better wouldn’t you agree?
Yes we gain potential but no more potential than Tejada was providing who fields much better and hit better than Emaus has to date.
Don’t get me wrong here dude I don’t have a problem with it being a lateral move just pointing out that the reason for the cut had much less to do with losing the job by performance and everything to do with the fact of Age.
It’s hard to say it was even about Money because lets face facts that Money is gone either way!