Juan Castro isn't exactly the biggest free agent out there, but he would seem to fit the bill for the kind of player that the Phillies were hoping to find.
He can play at second, short and third and give a good defensive effort at all three spots. And, he has a decent bat, or at least he did last season with Los Angeles.
Castro's agent Oscar Suarez initially said that no signing was imminent as of this morning, but things apparently changed quickly. By mid-afternoon, there were a number of reports that had Castro inking a one-year deal with a club option for 2011. The only thing needed to complete the deal was for Castro to pass a physical, which may not take place until after Thanksgiving, which means the signing may not be officially announced until next week.
While Castro is a career .230 hitter, he hit .277 last season with the Dodgers. During the previous two seasons with Cincinnati and Baltimore, he hit a combined .188 in 115 games.
With the Dodgers, Castro played primarily at short, but also played at second and third and spent parts of two games as a left fielder.
In 12 major league seasons, Castro is a .196 (20-for-102) as a pinch-hitter.
Manager Charlie Manuel has said that he would like to be able to give Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley a few more days off during the season without losing too much offense. The Phillies hope that Castro could be the answer to that situation for the Phillies.
Juan Castro's career stats
Year
|
G
|
AB
|
R
|
H
|
2B
|
3B
|
HR
|
RBI
|
BB
|
SO
|
BA
|
OBP
|
SLG
|
1995 Los Angeles
|
11
|
4
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
.250
|
.400
|
.250
|
1996 Los Angeles
|
70
|
132
|
16
|
26
|
5
|
3
|
0
|
5
|
10
|
27
|
.197
|
.254
|
.280
|
1997 Los Angeles
|
40
|
75
|
3
|
11
|
3
|
1
|
0
|
4
|
7
|
20
|
.147
|
.220
|
.213
|
1998 Los Angeles
|
89
|
220
|
25
|
43
|
7
|
0
|
2
|
14
|
15
|
37
|
.195
|
.245
|
.255
|
1999 Los Angeles
|
2
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
.000
|
.000
|
.000
|
2000 Cincinnati
|
82
|
224
|
20
|
54
|
12
|
2
|
4
|
23
|
14
|
33
|
.241
|
.283
|
.366
|
2001 Cincinnati
|
96
|
242
|
27
|
54
|
10
|
0
|
3
|
13
|
13
|
50
|
.223
|
.261
|
.302
|
2002 Cincinnati
|
54
|
82
|
5
|
18
|
3
|
0
|
2
|
11
|
7
|
18
|
.220
|
.278
|
.329
|
2003 Cincinnati
|
113
|
320
|
28
|
81
|
14
|
1
|
9
|
33
|
18
|
58
|
.253
|
.290
|
.388
|
2004 Cincinnati
|
111
|
299
|
36
|
73
|
21
|
2
|
5
|
26
|
14
|
51
|
.244
|
.277
|
.378
|
2005 Minnesota
|
97
|
272
|
27
|
70
|
18
|
1
|
5
|
33
|
9
|
39
|
.257
|
.279
|
.386
|
2006 Minnesota
|
50
|
156
|
10
|
36
|
5
|
2
|
1
|
14
|
6
|
23
|
.231
|
.258
|
.308
|
2006 Cincinnati
|
54
|
95
|
8
|
27
|
5
|
1
|
2
|
14
|
5
|
13
|
.284
|
.320
|
.421
|
2007 Cincinnati
|
54
|
89
|
5
|
16
|
5
|
0
|
0
|
5
|
4
|
21
|
.180
|
.211
|
.236
|
2008 Cincinnati
|
7
|
10
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
0
|
.000
|
.091
|
.000
|
2008 Baltimore
|
54
|
151
|
15
|
31
|
6
|
0
|
2
|
16
|
10
|
26
|
.205
|
.256
|
.285
|
2009 Los Angeles
|
57
|
112
|
18
|
31
|
4
|
0
|
1
|
9
|
6
|
25
|
.277
|
.311
|
.339
|
TOTALS
|
1041
|
2484
|
244
|
572
|
118
|
13
|
36
|
220
|
140
|
443
|
.230
|
.270
|
.332
|