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- This is an article about the baseball player José Castillo, not the José Castillo whose death was one of the precipitating events of the Spanish Civil War.
José Castillo [cas-TEEL-lyo] (born March 19, 1982 in Caracas, Venezuela) is a Major League Baseball second baseman who made his debut on April 7, 2004 with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Castillo is rated as the Pirates' best defensive infielder. He was named the fourth-best prospect by Baseball America following the 2003 season, and he also ranked as the top Pittsburgh prospect by USA Today Sports Weekly.
In 2003, Castillo was both the starting shortstop for the World Team in Major League Baseball's Futures Game played at Chicago's U.S. Cellular Field, and as an All-Star in the Eastern League. A right-handed batter, he played winter ball in Venezuela with the Leones del Caracas team, hitting .255 (49-for-192) with five home runs and 28 RBI in 53 games
In his rookie season Castillo hit .256 (98-for-383) with eight home runs, 39 RBI, 44 runs, 15 doubles, two triples, and three stolen bases in 129 games. He posted an on-base percentage of .298 and a slugging percentage of .368.
Castillo impressed the Pirates front office with his defensive play. In the field he displayed good range and a very strong arm in 2004, even better than the Pirates expected from a former shortstop. At the plate, however, his play was more typical of a 22-year-old who had never played in AAA. Except for hot streaks in April and August, Castillo did not hit for average or power and was not very selective at the plate, striking out with regularity (if not quite as often as some of his teammates) and walking very little despite hitting in front of the pitcher for most of the season. However, his power potential was apparent from the fact that the majority of his extra base hits and home runs were hit the opposite way -- including a 445-foot blast to center field on July 5, 2004 at cavernous Pro Player Stadium -- and his minor league statistics indicate that his plate discipline should improve. Because of his defense and high ceiling, he entered 2005 as the Pirates' starting second baseman.
See also
External links
- José Castillo at:
- Baseball Reference (stats) (http://www.baseball-reference.com/c/castijo02.shtml)
- ESPN (profile and daily update) (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7302)
- Sports Illustrated (2003 World Team roster) (http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/baseball/2003/allstar/news/2003/07/12/world_roster/)