Castro congratulates teammates after his first big-league at bat: a three-run homer off Cincinnati Reds RHP Homer Bailey
Baseball fans across the country have been treated to various surprises throughout the 2010 season. The unexpected storylines include the Padres and Rangers pitching staffs who have led them both to first place atop the NL and AL Western Divisions, the Reds and Braves emerging as contenders in their divisions, and various young stars popping up out of nowhere. Nearly every major sports site or network dubbed 2010 "the year-of the pitcher" due to the improbable influx of perfect games, no-hitters, and near perfection (I’m truly sorry Mr. Galarraga).
One of the most covered stories in Major League Baseball recently is the possibility of the first Triple Crown in 43 years (when a batter leads the league in homeruns, runs batted in and batting average). Joey Votto, Albert Pujols, and Carlos Gonzalez (with one of the best nicknames in baseball – Cargo) all stand legitimate chances of obtaining this feat: the only thing that stands in the way of any of them is each other. Every somewhat knowledgeable baseball fan already knows about all that; what most haven’t picked up on is a guy by the name of Starlin Castro.
The Chicago Cubs shortstop was recalled from Triple-A Iowa in early May when the platoon role of Jeff Baker and Mike Fontenot at second base failed: then manager Lou Piniella, who has since retired from baseball, moved Ryan Theriot from shortstop to second base and granted the 20-year old Castro the starting short stop role. The kid wasted no time in his May 7th debut: a 2 for 5 performance including a 3-run homer in his first at bat, a triple, and 6 RBIs on the day.
Castro has the 2nd fewest plate appearances amongst NL Shortstops (401), yet he still leads that group in doubles and lies 2nd in triples behind only Troy-Tulowitzki; Tulo (.322) and Castro (.317) are third and fourth respectively in batting average amongst all NL players. Since the All-Star break, Castro leads all of baseball in hits (74) and doubles (19). However, the Triple Crown trio and the many standout National League rookies (Jason Heyward, Stephen Strasburg, Buster Posey, and Jaime Garcia) often overshadow Castro.
Starlin Castro month by month split stats courtesy of Fangraphs.com (all stats as of morning of 9/10/10)
G | AB | PA | H | 1B | 2B | 3B | HR | R | RBI | BB | AVG | |
May | 23 | 87 | 93 | 27 | 23 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 13 | 5 | .310 |
Jun | 25 | 75 | 89 | 17 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 9 | .227 |
Jul | 25 | 97 | 104 | 35 | 22 | 9 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 13 | 5 | .361 |
Aug | 29 | 122 | 128 | 41 | 29 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 19 | 9 | 4 | .336 |
Sep | 5 | 20 | 22 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | .350 |
The above table reveals the awful June that Starlin Castro has, but more importantly, how he bounced back after that. Often a player who achieves great success in his first month or so in the big leagues gets “figured out” by the rest of the league as scouting information on him becomes more plentiful his second time through teams. However, when players are able to raise their stats back up after slumping for a little, odds are that player didn’t merely get lucky during that hot month he started the year off with. According to ESPN Senior Writer, Tim Kurkjian, one major league scout raved, “I said it in spring training and I still believe it. He will be a National League All-Star in 2012. He is terrific.”
Hopefully fans outside of Chicago realize this youngster’s potential sooner rather than later. He deserves to be in Rookie of the Year talks.
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