Castillo Limps Back to the Mets…
Posted by Christopher on November 20, 2007
The Mets have come to an agreement with free agent second baseman Luis Castillo on a 4 year, $25 Million Contract.This deal comes after the Mets were rumored to be wining and dining David Eckstein. Eckstein is believed to have been asking for a deal in the 4-year, $36 Million Dollar range.
I would concur with Omar in choosing Castillo over Eckstein, who I believe is overrated due to his percieved “hustle” and “scrappiness”. Castillo comes at a cheaper price, but the length of the deal is worrisome. Castillo is s a slap hitter with very little power, and thus very dependent on his legs. As a result, Castillo’s numbers have seen a steady decline over the last couple years as he experienced knee problems, probably linked to his time on the Metrodome’s carpet. Castillo hit .296 with 1 home run and 8 doubles after coming over to the Mets this past season. Castillo underwent surgery this offseason, and his recovery will go a long way in deciding whether this deal is a good one.
There were several other options at second, both via free agency (Eckstein, Tadahito Iguchi) and within the organization. Ruben Gotay had a breakout season last year, hitting .295 with a .421 slugging percentage. He also had 4 homers and 12 doubles (compared to 1 and 19 respectively for Luis Castillo in almost twice as many). The Mets traded for Gotay because of his perceived upside, but now have decided to keep him firmly anchored to the bench. While I understand that going into spring training with Gotay as the starter could be too risky given his relative lack of experience, but I hope Ruben still gets some starts. I am nervous about Castillo’s knees, I hope Omer knows more than I do.
Boyce, Concurring in Part, Dissenting in Part: FOUR YEARS? SERIOUSLY?
What has Luis Castillo shown us that warrants a four year deal? A guy who was never a great hitter, has serious knee problems, and his one greatest asset, his speed and defensive range don’t outway his negatives in any way shape or form anymore. This deal is ridiculous.
What I wanna know is, who did Reuben Gotay piss off? I know I might be the only one that cares, but didn’t this guy hit pretty well and didn’t play awful defense. Is he Castillo in the field? Probably not, but he offers more pop in his bat, and at this point can sure as hell run better than Castillo. I was ok with Castillo for one year, maybe two…but four years is absoultely absurd, and makes me assume that Omar is spending most of our payroll on bad tabs of acid.
Oh and did I forget to mention the fact that Castillo is supposedly a horrible influence in the clubhouse?
