After months of struggling as the Phillies' No. 3 or 4 hitter, Nick Castellanos was finally moved down in the lineup for Sunday's series finale with the Cubs.
Castellanos bats fifth, the lowest he has appeared in the Phils' batting order. The bulk of his season has been spent in the cleanup spot, but Castellanos had hit third in every game he started since Bryce Harper went down with a broken thumb on June 25.
Saturday was another frustrating night for a player the Phillies signed to a five-year, $100 million contract specifically because of his bat. Castellanos went 0 for 4 and struck out with the go-ahead run on third base to end the eighth inning. He has frequently struck out or grounded out in those clutch spots, but Rob Thomson and Joe Girardi before him have been hesitant to move him down, repeating that they believe he will get closer to his track record.
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SIGN UP HERE Over his last 270 plate appearances, Castellanos has hit .218/.252/.300 with three home runs. That is not a small sample size, it is a half-season's worth of plate appearances. There are 164 players with at least 200 plate appearances over that span and Castellanos' .552 OPS ranks 160th. He hasn't hit for average or power, hasn't worked counts, hasn't been able to square up mistakes and hasn't shown much plate selection, particularly on pitches low-and-away where he's attacked multiple times per at-bat. It is a pitch he has not been able to handle, much less hit with authority, but he hasn't been able to lay off.
Even the brief seven-game hit streak Castellanos carried into the All-Star break wasn't all that impactful because it included only two extra-base hits, two RBI, 12 strikeouts and one multi-hit game. He's on pace for 165 strikeouts, which would be by far a career-high.
It is notable that this lineup change was made even on a day when the Phillies face a lefty (Drew Smyly) that the right-handed-hitting Castellanos has gone 6 for 16 against with four doubles.
Here is the Phillies' lineup for Sunday's 12:05 p.m. game on Peacock:
MLB
1. Matt Vierling, CF
2. Kyle Schwarber, LF
3. Rhys Hoskins, 1B
4. Darick Hall, DH
5. Nick Castellanos, RF
6. Bryson Stott, 2B
7. Alec Bohm, 3B
8. Didi Gregorius, SS
9. Garrett Stubbs, C
Left-handers Bailey Falter (0-2, 4.82) and Smyly (2-5, 4.22) are on the mound.