Back in Time: Revisiting Luis Castillo trade to Reds
Man On Second Baseball sheds light on why Marlins traded Luis Castillo to the Reds in 2017
By Joe Frisaro @ManOn2nd
So much of Marlins history is connected to players exiting the organization only to flourish elsewhere. The story of right-hander Luis Castillo being traded to the Reds in 2017 is one of them.
Why would the Marlins part with a high-end pitching prospect just months after the death of All-Star Jose Fernandez?
Man On Second Baseball has learned some interesting details about why the trade was made. The interesting twist is, had the organization gone through with their intentions to break up the 2016 team, Castillo would likely have been part of a rebuild.
Let’s start from the beginning.
The Marlins, in the market for an established big league starter, consummated a trade with the Reds. The date was Jan. 19, 2017. Miami sent Castillo, Zeek White and Austin Brice to Cincinnati for right-hander Dan Straily.
Castillo at that point had been a promising prospect who drew mixed reviews from evaluators within and outside the organization. According to scouts, there were days Castillo pitched like a top of the rotation right-hander. In the eyes of some, he had the makings of a legitimate No. 2 starter. Then, on other days when he wasn’t at his best, in some cases, the same evaluators graded him as a back-end starter, or swing starter/reliever.
The question was ultimately asked from ownership to the front office if Castillo could help the Marlins in 2017? No one could confidently say yes, so the decision was to add him into the trade.
It’s a trade that has Marlins’ fans wondering what might have been.
Castillo, now 28, has established himself as a top of the rotation starter. In 2019, he was 15-8 with a 3.40 ERA in 190 2/3 innings. In 2020, in 70 innings, he was 4-6 with a 3.21 ERA.
What’s interesting is, Castillo in 2017 actually did pitch in the Majors, making 15 starts. He had a 3.12 ERA in 89 1/3 innings.
Straily actually was fine in 2017, going 10-9 with a 4.26 ERA in 33 starts. He logged 181 2/3 innings. He dealt with injury in ’18, going 5-6 with a 4.12 ERA in 122 1/3 innings, and he didn’t make the club in 2019.
At the time the Marlins acquired Straily, he was pretty much the only available, experienced starter on the market.
Going back to those days, the Marlins were dealing with the aftermath of Fernandez’s death. Those were very dark, devastating days.
Along with dealing with the emotions of losing one of the young faces of the sport, along with one of the best pitchers, the Marlins tried to make sound organizational decisions. What was best? Break up the team, and start over? Or keep it together one more year, add another starter with a track record, and go for it?
The decision was made to give it one more year. Also remember, Marlins Park was the host site of the 2017 All-Star Game.
The market was already grieving Fernandez’s passing, as were the players who competed daily with their superstar starter. With the eyes of the sport on Miami for the All-Star Game, would it have been wise, at least publicly, to rebuild in 2017?
That’s a tough call, and one Marlins ownership didn’t have to deal with. Instead, they gave it a go in 2017. Giancarlo Stanton, of course, caught fire and was the National League MVP.
The Marlins were sold immediately after the 2017 season, and the core of Stanton, Christian Yelich, Marcell Ozuna and Dee Gordon were traded. A year later, J.T. Realmuto also was dealt, and the Marlins currently have the a loaded farm system and a promising big league roster.
The Marlins today appear to be headed in a good direction.
In hindsight, though, had the rebuild started immediately after Fernandez’s death, chances are, Castillo would not have been traded. As they say, hindsight is 20/20.