Max

Castillo

Castillo was cut loose earlier this week after being jettisoned from Philadelphia’s 40-man roster and going unclaimed on waivers. The 25-year-old was a somewhat notable pitching prospect a couple years ago, so it’s likely he’ll be able to latch on somewhere new for next season.

Castillo went unclaimed on waivers after being designated for assignment last Friday and will stick around as extra organizational relief depth.

The Phillies needed to clear a couple of spots on their 40-man roster on Friday and unfortunately Castillo drew one of the short straws this time around. The 25-year-old right-hander has been stationed in the minors for the duration of the season, posting an uninspiring 7.62 ERA, 1.77 WHIP and a 40/25 K/BB ratio across 52 innings. He should pass through waivers unclaimed and continue to function as extra bullpen depth for the Phillies.

The former first-round pick by the Braves will be used as a depth piece for the Phillies’ pitching this season. He was limited last season due to a shoulder injury, but made three starts and one relief appearance for Atlanta, amassing a 6.57 ERA in 12 1/3 innings. Allard tossed 5 2/3 innings of spring ball and allowed two earned runs on six hits.

Castillo is 0-3 with a 5.43 ERA in six starts and 15 relief appearances with the Jays and Royals the last two years. His stuff is fringy, but he can eat innings when needed and be stashed in Triple-A the rest of the time.

The roster churn continues for the full throttle Red Sox with Castillo heading back to the waiver wire following the acquisition of veteran backstop Tyler Heineman. The 24-year-old righty was scooped up off waivers last month from the Royals and was likely to open the year at Triple-A Worcester.

Castillo represents an intriguing speculative gamble for the Red Sox’ rebuilt pitching development engine after spending the holidays in DFA limbo following his removal from Kansas City’s 40-man roster. The 24-year-old righty made seven relief appearances in the big leagues this past season and has made 21 appearances (six starts) dating back to 2022. He could easily wind up making Boston’s season-opening relief mix.

The Royals clearly aren’t high on Samad Taylor, so it doesn’t look like they’ll be getting much of a contribution from the two players they acquired from the Blue Jays for Whit Merrifield in 2022. They were hoping at the time that Castillo might stick as a fifth starter, but he had a 9.16 ERA in five major league outings in the second half of 2022, and he made just seven relief appearances in the majors last season, posting a 4.43 ERA with an ugly 10/9 K/BB in 20 1/3 innings. He had a 4.58 ERA as a starter in Triple-A.

Castillo heads back to the minors following Thursday’s contest against the Mariners. The 24-year-old righty has made seven relief appearances this season in the big leagues for Kansas City.

Castillo gets the call back to the majors to join Kansas City’s bullpen ahead of Saturday’s game against the Cardinals. The 24-year-old righty has posted a 4.24 ERA, 1.35 WHIP and 10/6 K/BB ratio across 17 innings (five appearances) this season in the majors.