TODAY: Avila addressed the comments today, telling MLive.com’s Evan Woodbery (Twitter links) and other media that “That’s something where he felt like he needed to express that publicly. That’s fine. [The comments] have no effect on the team or his performance or anything like that. He’ll come in in great shape. He’ll come in and compete and he’ll be one of our better hitters in the lineup and I expect him to have a great season.” The general manager also reiterated that a trade “can’t be forced.”
THURSDAY: Nicholas Castellanos has seen his name bandied about the rumor circuit enough to know that the Tigers intend to trade him before this season’s non-waiver deadline, and his agent, David Meter, tells Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press that Castellanos would prefer to open Spring Training with a new team if it’s a foregone conclusion that he’ll be moved eventually anyhow. However, Detroit general manager Al Avila said today (link via Will Burchfield of 97.1 FM The Ticket) that the market for Castellanos has been “frustrating” and plainly stated that, “…right now, really, I don’t have anything going on,” with regard to Castellanos talks.
Castellanos, 27 in March, is entering his final season of club control and has already agreed to a $9.95MM salary for the upcoming season. It’s no secret that the Tigers are well into a large-scale rebuild, and as a pending free agent, Castellanos stands out as an obvious trade piece. The two sides have reportedly discussed long-term arrangements in the past but failed to find a common ground.
There’s little denying that Castellanos is a high-quality bat that could deepen the lineup for any contending club. Over the past three seasons, he’s batted a combined .285/.336/.495 with 67 home runs, 107 doubles and 19 triples in 1790 trips to the plate. He’s cut back on his strikeout rate over the past two seasons as well and, in 2018, notched a career-best 7.2 percent walk rate that helped him post a career-high .354 on-base percentage. Castellanos isn’t the premier slugger that the Tigers had on their hands in J.D. Martinez, but he’s also younger and less expensive.
Like Martinez, however, the primary knock on Castellanos is his outfield defense. The converted third baseman shifted to right field full-time last season due to poor defense at his original position, but the results in the outfield weren’t any better. Castellanos graded out extremely poorly (-19 DRS, -12.9 UZR and a league-worst -24 Outs Above Average), which makes him a tough sell to a National League club. While it’s probably fair to expect that his glovework can improve with more reps at a still relatively new position, any team acquiring Castellanos to play in the field regularly would do so knowing that he’d be giving back a portion of the value provided by his excellent bat.
Fenech reports that the Tigers’ asking price for Castellanos has been one “top-level” prospect, adding that Detroit would need to feel it was receiving better value than a potential pick in the 2020 draft. That indicates that the organization considers Castellanos a potential qualifying offer candidate following the ’19 season.
Beyond Castellanos’ defensive shortcomings, the Tigers are in a tough spot with regard to trading Castellanos given that several plausible suitors have recently filled holes in other ways. The Dodgers reportedly struck a deal with A.J. Pollock just a few hours ago, and the Braves re-signed Nick Markakis earlier this week. The Rays, meanwhile, signed Avisail Garcia last week, and the division-rival Twins, who could’ve viewed Castellanos as a DH candidate, instead signed Nelson Cruz to a one-year deal with an option.
The Astros were also said to be in on Cruz and stand out as a speculative on-paper fit for Castellanos, and the Indians are known to be seeking some additional outfield help. Perhaps the Phillies could view Castellanos as something of a fallback option if their higher-profile pursuits don’t pan out, but Rhys Hoskins’ poor defense in left field was a catalyst for this offseason’s trade of Carlos Santana, and Castellanos’ struggles were similar, if not more substantial, to those of Hoskins. The Giants are reportedly in the mix for outfield help but don’t seem likely to pay a premium for a one-year rental (and also surely are wary of the defensive question marks). Similar sentiments could apply to the White Sox.
Of course, teams interested in Castellanos also figure to be reluctant to pay a premium when there are still so many corner-outfield options available in free agency. Marwin Gonzalez, Adam Jones, Carlos Gonzalez, Denard Span and Derek Dietrich are just some of the many alternatives in free agency, and while Castellanos is a safe bet to outperform most of that bunch (excepting Marwin Gonzalez, perhaps), the cost of acquisition would be only money. In the case of all but Marwin, in fact, each of that bunch should cost less than Castellanos’ $9.95MM total commitment. The trade market also has alternatives in the form of Hunter Renfroe, Eric Thames and others.
It’s understandable that Castellanos would want to know his fate sooner rather than later, but at the same time, there’s a greater supply of players with his skill set (or close to it) than there is demand. An injury to a contending club’s designated hitter or corner outfielder in Spring Training could create a new suitor, however, so perhaps it wouldn’t be the worst thing for Castellanos if he’s still with the Tigers when camp opens.
GREAT.
Now another player the Dodgers are gonna be linked too.
Why would he get traded to a league without a DH?
His defense is in article, I’ll summarize how atrocious:
2018: -19 DRS in OF (1234.1 Innings in RF)
Did not play any other position outside RF
Last time he played 3B, was 2017:
-14 DRS at third base (1098.1 Innings)
Career:
-64 DRS in third base (including -30 DRS in 2014)
JDM played the field for AZ. If a team like the Mets suddenly need an outfielder, they’ll chance defense later in the season. I believe he should hope to be traded after the season stops as price can only go up if there is no compensation attached. As it stands, Detroit might be bluffing suggesting they will offer the one year deal to trigger compensation. T will be I believe over !18m next year.
Actually that implies he was improving at 3rd
The NEW YORK METS… LETS GO BRODIE……..THIS IS OUR MISSING PIECE
No thanks. I will take another bullpen arm and/or starter depth, though.
You really mean another infielder, cuz that’s all the Mets sign these days….
stop it. He’s the worst fielder in baseball.
No, Bryce Harper is the worst outfielder in baseball. His advanced numbers were lower than Nick’s and it wasn’t his first year playing the position.
he was garbage at 3rd and outfield
the Mets need offense. how many games last year did degrom put up less than 2ER and the Mets couldnt give him run support? too many. if they have to put a clunky glove in the OF or 3B they should be more than willing.
defense isnt everything. offense if vastly more important than defense, especially if your pitching staff is really good. if your pitching is good, your defense is automatically good. good fielders are just icing on the cake at that point
They might get an extra run per game with his bat but then the Mets; deGrom in particular might lead the league in unearned runs.
Mets could use him when the dinosaur NL finally gets with the program and gets the DH.
The designated hitter: the LONGEST experiment known to man.
There’s nothing as painful as watching a pitcher bat. 99% of the time, it looks very unprofessional and is the dumbest thing in sports.
I disagree. Some pitchers are good with the bat, though once Bartolo retires I want the NL to finally adopt the DH.
They could have made a trade with the Cubs for Almora who is absolutely spectacular in CF and they didn’t do that. Not sure why they would want a mediocre fielder corner outfielder, which they already have plenty of those.
Cubs giving up Almora for this clown. Now that is funny. In your dreams.
Cmon NL DH already
Heck no, you telling me you don’t want to watch MadBum hit? It’s part of the game. If anything I’d rather see the MLB get rid of the DH. It takes a lot of strategy out of the game. Now that won’t happen but still tell me I’m wrong.
Bumgarner has a career .540 OPS over 531 AB, so no, absolutely not, I do not need to see that terrible hitting of his ever again.
As for “getting rid of strategy” have you ever watched an Angels game over the last 20 years??? When you talk about “strategy” you mean “more mound visits” – face it dude, you hate baseball.
Lol not in favor of an NL DH = hating baseball now apparently. Congrats on that epic strawman you constructed
46 years of the DH. No going back, get with it NL.
The DH brings more offense to a game that is already boring to the average fan. Getting rid of the DH would be fine for fans like us that actually appreciate the game and it’s in depth strategies, but it’ll create a less interesting game for potential new fans which is what the MLB is trying to accomplish
I like each league being different. Only thing I want is to eliminate interleague play so AL pitchers don’t have to hit and run bases to prevent injury.
You can have Brain dead Managers in the AL,they don’t have to do anything,leave it how it is.Notice lately that National League type of teams in the American League have been winning the WS because they perform the whole game and the Dodgers are closer to an American League team and they lose,hmm? Get a clue AL Fans!
Last time I checked there was 9 POSITIONS on the baseball diamond. Each position SHOULD hit. if THEY want to keep (AL)/add the designated hitter (NL) add a 10th position to the batting order. So SIMPLE even the Geico caveman could’ve came up with it.
The Red Sox and Astros aren’t even close to a NL team. What are you talking about?
Sorry, but it is way more interesting to watch an NL game as their is more strategy involved.
Thank you Tigersfan. It was added to create offense in I believe 73. Bloomberg and Cepeda were two of the first ones. I was 11 but even late in his career it was great to see Cha Cha in a Sox uniform. Took three games for his first hit but the fans went nuts when it left the park!
Agree. on stopping interleague games but for a different reason. It makes the WS and even the ASG more interesting to watch.
Wow. Strategy!!!
Manager decides to have SP go 6, then pinch hits for him, then GASP, makes a double switch!!! (so exciting) Then game goes to extra innings and manager runs out of PH’ers, and has to have his RP’s bat.
Sooooooo exciting!!! 2-3 run games total WOW!!!
The Red Sox and Astros play the whole game(Walk,Sacrifice,Stolen Bases,advancing the Runners etc.)contrary to sitting back and waiting for HRs and not hitting with Runners in Scoring Position)like the dodgers did.
Brain dead managers like Joe Maddon huh
Funny when they play for the WS who wins?
Woodruff going deep off Kershaw in the NLCS was pretty great
So if the NL club thinks the pitcher can hit put him in the DH spot that day. Don’t see the big deal there.
Yea because it makes the game sooooo great and fun to watch when the bases are loaded with 2 outs in the 1st-5th innings and the pitcher comes up to bat..
It’s also not so great to see the good hitters with not so great defense (or getting up there in age) to be conveniently forced or confined to the AL. It’s long overdue and frankly dumb to have it in one league and not the other.
BTW, I was a big proponent of the Braves giving up one of their top 8-10 out of 110 in baseball to aquire castellenos before resigning the older Nick with little pop.
You’re not really a Braves fan if you would’ve done that. You may not realize it, but giving up that much value for him would be a horrible move for the Braves
You can cut the tension with a knife. Will they pull Scherzer in the 3rd inning to drive in a run or have him flail away? When the double switch happens in the 2nd or 3rd inning it will be strategy, until then it is simply a silly tradition. The DH actually adds more strategy when they conform to the haters stereotype. Late innings the DH gets a hit and is in scoring position but doesn’t have the speed to score on a single. Do you pull him for a PR and potentially lose him if the game goes extra innings? With only 2-3 guys on the bench, none who can really hit unless a starter is on a rest day, that decision can decide a game. There are 7-8 pitchers in the pen, the starter rarely completes a game anymore, so the double switch has much less impact.
Yea ok…proven bat for an unproven prospect. Guess I’m paying for mlb extra innings for no reason!
Nonsense. Strategy is when to use your pinchhitters, when to double switch, etc. Reward pitchers that learn to bunt or hit the other way to advance a runner. He’s helping his own cause. Baseball is not home run derby, just get up there and swing for the fences. That’s boring. The 2-1 WS game Morris won over Smoltz was as exciting a game as there ever was. Nailbiter with each AB.
You say that but the times to double switch or pinch hit are very predictable. Top starters aren’t going to pulled in early innings with runners in scoring position even if the starter has next to zero chance of getting a hit, bunt, walk.
All that sounds like the most boring possible interpretation of baseball. Home runs are the pinnacle of personal team sports achievement.
I wish the fans wanting it to stay in the Nl realised how much it hurt thier teams not having a 4th outfielder type who could actually hit well on the team. or being able to give more rest to guys whos bats are too important to be in the lineup.
But hey we can randomly grab a guy off the bench in the playoffs and he’ll do just as good right?
Not to mention everytime I see a pitcher get hurt flailing at the plate attempting to swing a bat when he doesnt know what hes doing and doesnt practice how annoying it is.
Or seeing a pitcher stand on 2nd base in the cold or rain for 15 minutes in between innings.
it really will be so much better once its fianlly pushed through. If you have the rare 1 in 100 Pitcher who can hit, great. Let him pinch hit if you want. Otherwise its not worth it.
Over the last ten years, the NL has won the World Series 5 times. I don’t think the lack of a DH makes much difference. The AL team has to decide what to do with that hitter who is a butcher at defense when they play in NL parks and their pitcher is hitting..
It hasn’t mattered at all. NL has 21 victories since 1973, AL has 24, so pretty even. I hate how they keep messing with the game we grew up with. Can’t hustle into home or 2nd anymore, freaking replay, mound visit trips regulated, pitchers are going to have shot clocks. and worst of all DH coming to NL.
So they’re messing with the game you grew up with? Yet the game you grew up with was messed with decades before and will always be “messed with”. The game is always changing and will always change whether those changes are good or not, it’s inevitable. Most of the things you’re talking about can stay in the 20th century because those changes are what’s best for baseball now. It’s not about you and your fantasy of baseball 50 years ago, it’s about the safety of players and the well-being of the rest of the fans who the majority of agree with all those changes cause it’s what makes sense in today’s times
Nice political speech.
Exactly, if the pitcher is 2-way or just really loves hitting and can put up numbers, fine. But there’s no reason to let that happen when you could easily find a guy who can OPS higher than .540. Making the rule DH/P optional for both leagues would be perfect. The way the game is going we are going to start seeing more 2-way players, so it makes sense as the times change..
JUST a DH?
Ridiculous.
The DH should never be asked to run. He’s not used to it. He could get hurt. The fans didn’t come to see Kendrys Morales run. He should have a Designated Runner, as well. Why ask anyone to do anything ever?
Come to think of it….pitchers aren’t good fielders, either. And they could get hurt fielding and they get paid too much to get hurt fielding. Designated fielder. He can crouch behind the mound until after the pitch and then pop up to assist to the poor, helpless pitcher who cannot be expected to have an ounce of athleticism in his body.
Anytime someone is bad at something, we should get rid of that something instead of asking them to get ever better at anything.
Hey, don’t give them any ideas, the DH was bad enough
The DH is the Relief Pitcher of hitting, and you’re probably fine with RPs, so I really don’t understand why you can’t see the logic here.
Aint no stinking DH getting 100% of the HOF vote…
I can’t argue against your point after seeing Kendrys Morales run.
DH should never have existed. Thank god it didn’t come around until the 70’s or a lot of players who were pitchers, including Babe Ruth may never have made the switch. It’s basically turning a game of chess into a game of checkers. A reward for mediocre players that can only play one facet of the game. I know I am in the minority, but to me its a shame.
It’s like the AFC having field goal kickers and the NFC making your quarterback try to kick field goals on top of being quarterback..
When in all reality it should be A level playing field in both league and it’s plainly obvious we don’t need pitchers with bats in their hands when u know what’s guna happen 80-90% of the time. It’s ugly and long overdue for baseball.
Strategy schmategy tragedy… Get it done once and for all!
It’s actually nothing like that. In baseball, each player participates on both offense and defense, including the pitcher. None of the other offensive or defensive players in football play both ways, nor kick field goals.
Hey nymetsking, enough with the sensibility and correctness! No place for logic here!
He’d fit nicely in Cleveland…
I love how suddenly Bryce Harper is “terrible at defense” but Castellanos is like a budget version of him at the plate and WAYYYYY worse at defense than him, but he can demand his own market? No one wants a terrible defender who’s “decent” at the plate. Harper is a beast at the plate and his market ain’t moving at all.
His agent stated that if he is to be traded than it happen sooner than later. Stating your preference isn’t demanding your own market
Strike four, get off your knees… Bryce is a married man. He wasn’t mentioned in this article and no one compared these 2 players, so take your man crush elsewhere.
Harper’s UZR/UZR150 was -14.4/-16.7. Nick’s UZR/UZR150 was -12.9/-12.3.
That make Bryce a worse defender.
Strike Four doesn’t look at stats before he posts.
Strike Four knows better than to use single season UZR numbers.
They just let Edgar Martinez into the HoF, the AL does reward those types of player
And how many HOF pitchers were lauded for their hitting other than Ruth? Exactly. We are missing literal HOF careers because some terrible outdated interpretation of the game is still being stubbornly grasped by fans who actually enjoys whatever the interpretation of “managerial strategy” is today.
But Im fun at parties, I swear!
In my opinion a 3 win player is a 3 win player. I don’t get all the extra focus on defense when his floor is 2.5 to 3 wins even if he plays his usual defense.
It’s the distribution that matters. A 3 win player who’s 50/50 offense and defense, can have a decline in one aspect and still maintain value. A 3 win player who is all offense, cannot afford such a decline.
Castellanos is one mechanical problem away from being all-but-useless. Once that bat craters, he has nothing else to provide value with.
Welp
id want a trade too if i played for Detroit
I’d also like to know where I’m going to be spending the next year so I could make plans for housing, my family, etc.
High ceiling, low risk in AL.
Just the wrong time to be a FA.
He’s not a FA….
10 point difference in wOBA for 1/3 the price…no long term commitment. Sounds like an Indians guy…maybe Astros.
We like Castellanos for an Indian. Tigers send Castellanos and Green to Indians. Indians send Kipnis and Triston McKenzie to Tigers.
Beautiful top prospect and big salary to Tigers. Also solve Indians missing big bat and many hole relief corps problems.
While I’d LOVE to get that package back for both of them, we’d be lucky as hell to even get one of those guys, let alone McKenzie.
The Indians would ship out Kipnis for a bucket of balls if they didn’t have to pay his salary.
The tigers are rebuilding, why would they pay for his big contract when they already have to pay for Verlander Zimmerman and fielders contracts. They’re trying to remove those high salaries so they have room to pay people when they’ve completed their rebuild
I hope you’re responding to Heath & not me. I certainly wouldn’t want Kipnis on the Tigers. My point is he has no trade value, certainly not Shane Green.
No doubt about his lumber.
But Paul Bunyan has a Blue Ox for a glove.
Nolan Jones for Nick straight up. Indians get 2019’s JD and complete a powerful lineup to go with their starters. Your proposal is the reason he’s still a Tiger. Nobody needs Kipnis & certainly not for Greene.
I am not trading McKenzie for a rental player.
Lol “I am not trading…” since when were you the gm of the Indians?
OK, the Indians will not trade McKenzie for a rental. Happy now.
Besides, the article said that his market has not developed and is frustrating. Why would Cleveland trade McKenzie for a player when the market is not there? It would be foolish. and the Indians front office is not foolish.
Nick isn’t a rental player. Any team that trades for him will plan on extending him. He’d be an excellent long term fit for Cleveland since their window is now. I had hoped the Tigers would extend him.
The Indians will continue to have their young core get raises in arbitration. I would rather extend Clevinger than a player that is likely to be a DH in Castellanos. Yes, for Cleveland, Castellanos would likely be a rental and they will not trade McKenzie for a rental, Why do you think his market has been slow? It is because his future is at DH and you don’t give big money in this time for a rental for a player that is just a DH.
When the Indians have traded top prospects in the past, they got players with several years of control. They received 2 1/2 years of Andrew Miller and 3 years of Brad Hand and 5 years of Adam Cimber. The small market Indians cannot trade a top prospect for a rental. They can’t and they won’t.
They’ll want to extend him, that doesn’t mean he’ll agree, and an extension probably won’t be agreed upon before the trade, meaning he’ll be traded with the trade value of a rental.
Cleveland would make a trade for a nice piece to help short term but never send their ace prospect back to a division rival that they’d face so many times over the next so many years…never…
Castellanos is interesting, his market hasn’t developed at all.. While I’m convinced there’s enough history to show he can’t play 3rd base, just one season into a conversion to the OF it’s tossed around he’s a hack with no room for improvement.
I guess what I am saying is if he can improve to passable on D then then someone could get a really good bat, the best not named Harper/Machado, at a discount. DET has already seen first hand with JD Martinez flipping this type of player in July doesn’t improve the return.
The Tigers will likely extend Mick a qualifying offer if he has a good season and they can’t trade him. That was not possible with JD after they signed Upton.
What’s interesting is that anyone, including Castellanos himself, thinks he has trade value, Detroit is not getting a single top 100 prospect for him. Period. Mediocre to good bat and is already a DH. JD Martinez he is not. Not on the same planet.
I know he’s a terrible defender but if he play 3b even a little bit, I’d take him in philly
This is so strange to me…. he’s basically putting himself in position to get a qualifying offer. Not that every team would do that because he’s not that good, but still… big risk, and a few might.
First full year as an outfielder, kinda expect him to be bad. Also expecting him to improve.
Also had 10 assists from RF. If he played LF, maybe he’d improve? One thing would be certain; you’d have a LF with a rocket.
However, it’s still a gamble if he can’t turn the corner defensively. He’d need to have a big offensive season to forgive him.
I’d venture to say those assists are a by-product of players being more willing to run on him, owing to his horrendous routes and even worse range.
10 assists was tied for 2nd and Nick was 11th in fielding percentage for all qualified MLB RFs. That’s stats aren’t that bad. Who cares if players run on him thinking he sucks, he threw them out.
You guys are missing the point that a team should add him for his Bat.
Cam makes him sound like he’s on crutches out there in the field.
Puiq had worse % and more errors.
Fielding percentage is one of the worst statistics to use when looking at a defenders value. They can’t make errors on balls they don’t get to. We’ve had a better understanding of fielding value past that for many years.
You’re in the minority if you think Castellanos isn’t one of the worst, if not THE worst, fielders in the game. A lot points to that being the case.
Well Cam, I’d argue since I watched Castellanos toss out a Jay live in-person I can say with certainty he has an arm.
As for the fielding percentage argument I am with you 100%. Some guys can’t make the transition from infielder to outfielder or vice versa. Castellanos was a poor defender at 3B. Can’t hide him anywhere. He has to hit, or else.
We also can’t say for certain he can play 1B. His best chance is to remain in the AL, move to a home park with less ground to cover and hope for the best.
In Comerica, LF is huge, so the weakest fielder plays RF, which is smaller.
This might sound weird, because most of your bad OFs are sent down the spectrum to LF, but LF reads are generally the toughest reads especially for a new OF. So hiding a player on a corner doesn’t necessarily mean LF if you tend to worry about reads.
It’s a shame he can’t catch the ball, or he’d already have his wish.
I would prefer to be a millionaire before I retire too. Nick isn’t good enough to demand anything.
I would hope you’re a millionaire before you retire, otherwise you shouldn’t be retiring. I agree he’s not good though, but an ok player has value.
I completely agree, and the Tigers should move him, I just think moving him because the he asks is the LAST thing I would do if I were the team. Players asking to be moved and making it public is so dumb. Takes away leverage from the team essentially making it harder to justify the move seeing teams have that knowledge that the player is unhappy.
So, you think the tigers should move him. You obviously think your opinion is alright. But it’s NOT ALRIGHT if he states that he’d RATHER be traded before the season starts than during the season.
You probably won’t be a millionaire before you retire, given your inability to read. Zero demands made.
Sorry, he didn’t come out and stomp his feet demanding. But saying he’d want to be moved before spring “if he is inevitably moving anyways” is still a demand. He’s trying to tell the team when he should be moved. If the team would rather wait til the trade deadline to max out their value for him that’s their prerogative, not something he can or should be asking to control. ,
RicoD the inability to read is strong in the Rico1. Its says the agent said that. That comes directly from the player.
Happy2engage, you also seem to be unable to read… or write for that matter.
Matthew, valid point. I’m not going to say you’re wrong but there are 2 things that most people aren’t considering. Imagine your boss would come up to you every morning when you’re having coffee and say “Matt, we will probably be transferring you to one of our other offices”. You have a family, you’d like to know as much as possible. You didn’t ask to be transferred, but you still have the right and definitely the desire to get information regarding that potential transfer. I think it’s hard for people to relate but eventually after Avila telling everyone and their mother they are going to move him you wanna just “just do it already”.
The second piece is that his agent is probably more fed up than anyone. It can be assumed that the player told the agent to say thing but maybe it’s the agent putting pressure on the team. Many teams have been linked to NC since the winter meetings. Avila says he wants to move him, the agent probably got a ton of calls and Avila is still shuffling his feet. NC made it clear he wants to be a tiger last year, this is all because Avila continues to advertise his plan.
@Rica Youre wright absolutelee.
Sorry someone had to point out your BS comment.
Don’t attack others mental midget. It’s called online etiquette.
You should re-read the article. it says ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about NC demanding anything. He simply stated his preference to be traded before the season starts.
Avila did this to himself by making it clear they had no intention to keep Castellanos. Teams know they don’t want to pay that salary and still lose 100 games, therefore they are squeezing the tigers into settling for less than they want. They will be in the same situation they were in with JD Martinez. The difference is they know they won’t be good next year, when they were actually still competitive with JD.
@RicoD
Nick C is in the last year before free agency. Its not the dollars-he’s a bargain. They don’t wish to lose him for just a draft pick.
very true, at the end of the year they are left with nothing once he is a free agent.
I’m glad that the Tigers will keep Nick. No team begins the season with any losses and miracles happen in baseball. Nick should have every incentive to show off, which could lead to a good season in Detroit. Stay tuned!
Not sure how Gonzalez would outperform Castellanos, at least on the offensive side. Gonzalez just had a career high in K’s and a considerable drop in power. Going into his age 30 season in the non steroid era this pretty much a guarantee for a downhill slide from here on out.
I am curious as to what type of deal the tigers would offer him? I would think he could be a moderately expensive long term guy…train him at all 4 corners, let him DH some and utilize him. he’s farm raised. I say keep him…he will get better. when he first came up he waived at pitches, had little discipline and I thought he was up too early. he has become a very confident bat and a threat. maybe $60m for 6 with incentives to make him work? no clue what his market would compare to due to his fielding metrics.
WAR 2.9
oWAR 4.7
dWAR -2.4
This guy is strictly a DH.
However, at DH this guy will do really well. All-around hitter and hasn’t hit his prime.
I would have liked Nicholas in Atlanta if it wasn’t for his “suspect” defense. I still think he could’ve improved with the glove working with players like Ender Inciarte although its probably just wishful thinking on my part
It’s not like he’s a terrible fielder, he just doesn’t have much range. That can be improved with a good defensive coach. He only had 3 errors last year.
Nick Castellanos doesn’t have errors because the official scorers don’t score his poor reactions and bad routs.
Official scorers don’t do that for any fielder… ask Nyjer Morgan.
youtube.com/watch?v=G10BVmmxpFI
Many considered him a good defender.
Castellanos is likely to be with Detroit this year and most of next. He is good enough to give the QO to, and if his agent has been paying attention, he will probably accept. No one will give up a draft pick to sign a defensively challenged player. Then by waiting a year,(and getting top dollar for it) he will enter free agency unencumbered by a QO.
Tigers might as well try and extend him. Their offense is terrible and if Nick leaves, it will only be worse. He’s young enough to still be part of a rebuild. He won’t get a QO because he’s not worth it and if they did QO him and he refused, no one would lose a draft pick to sign him.
Sounds like Josh Harrison’s trade request last year. Players don’t always accurately gauge their market.
Would be ok if he stayed then took qo by me. He hung out after game with me n grandkids and other fans til we ran outa questions. He was really cool.
NC catches pretty good and throws real good. But needs to take better routes. He starts in too soon
The best gamble is to let him play out this year hungry for a big contract next year in FA. If he has a huge offensive year and his defense improves slightly, a team is more likely to overlook the d for the bat and forfeit a draft pick. One tho guns clear, nobody is going to give up a top prospect for him now.
this should be what the tigers are saying…not Nick.
Tigers should get more return as the receiving team gets more time plus the ability for a QO.
For Nick if he gets traded after opening day hes not eligible for a QO. IMO a QO kills his market.
Tigers need to lower their asking price. Insanity to offer him a QO. Honestly, think there are several AL teams that would be interested for a mid-level prospect.
He’s worth more than a mid-level prospect. His bat is way too good, albeit the horrible defense will drag on his value. But still, he’d fetch a somewhat decent return
Agreed even as a Yankee fan I believe he’s got to be worth more than what people were thinking the Yanks could possibly get for Andujar. That being said I still like Andujar better, still controlled for a bit more.
“controlled for a bit more”
No. Controlled for a much more amount of time. Andujar had his rookie season last year, Castellanos is a F/A after this season.
Andujar would fetch a much bigger return based on years of control alone. You are a fool if you think he commands more total value than Andujar, even if he is a better player.
and that’s what I don’t like two leagues playing the same sport with a different rule for each league.
I think the AL benefits more in head to head match-ups at the AL Park because they have a full-time DH on their roster already while the NL teams do not.
Just extend him and put him at DH when Miggy is hurt, which should be at least 40 games, then move him there full time later. They’ll have to pay for a good DH anyway when they contend.
Bless his heart
Well I mean… he can’t play the field much longer. Worst DRS among RFs, 3rd worst UZR/150 (Harper 2nd worst in both btw)
This is a groundbreaking development folks. The hot stove is truly in full force right now. According to this article, a Major League Baseball player would rather be traded BEFORE a season starts, so he does not have to uproot any family or have any move during the middle of the season. Thank you to MLBTR for posting this. This is going to blow the off-season wide open!
Was your comment necessary? It’s about as useful as what you are purporting in your comment.
And twice as useful as yours…
Its just a report, man. Just because it isnt groundbreaking doesnt mean that Castellanos went out to make a public comment and that Avila responded means nothing.
If you want hot-takes, go read ESPN articles you goof.
I wish i can edit on the app. My grammar was a bit messed up here. Change “doesnt mean that Castellanos went out to make a public comment and that Avila responded” to “doesnt mean that Castellanos going out to make a public comment and Avila responding”
I am one of the biggest Tigers fan there is, but I hate the fact that he felt he had to go public with this. Keep your lips closed and just go do your job Nic. You already agreed with your Arb numbers without going through the process, you KNOW they are already trying to trade you, so don’t come out and act like you’re the s%!t and TELL them “Yo if I’m traded so it befote ST”. You aren’t THAT great to be able to do so, and if you were Nic chances are you’d already BEEN traded son! Last thing, he actually was getting better at 3rd before they moved him to RF. It’s the DET organization to blame for his defensive shortcomings due to constant movement in the field so they did that to themselves as to why he’s only tradable to the NL
Haha, love Aviala’s response – “Don’t care”
Good hitter without much trade value seeing as he is a 1 year DH rental. Does he have a draft pick attached to him if the tigers lose him to FA ?
I think the Yankees would be a good fit…Let Nick DH…Let gardner be depth and bench piece….Yanks are not going to sign Bryce or The Clown Manny….Yanks could trade one of the Pitchers in the minors for Nick….just a thought….another fit would be Cleveland …Houston..Toronto……
Unless he can pitch he is not a good fit. The Yankees just do not need any offense. It would be more of a luxury to have him in the lineup more than it is a necessity.
Yankees already have one horrible defensive 3B on their roster who they would like to find a new position for. Don’t need the 2 years ago version of that as well. If he was a left handed hitter, he may fit their roster.
One other thought Avilia started this whole thing by opening his mouth this week…Al is a nice guy but a horrid…GM way over his head….he will make this rebuild far longer then shorter…..tigers a 100 plus loss team for the next 2 years ..maybe some hope by 2021….
Last year, they didnt have Miggy and did not lose 100. Only real change is Victor is gone. I don’t see that as a negative. Ross and Moore are solid replacements for Fiers and Liriano in the rotation. Guessing they will be a few games better, as Cleveland, and KC are weaker. Wouldn’t mind seeing them pick up a Logan Morrison type.
I see a lot of people complaining about his defense. That is the problem with people paying too much attention to “advanced” stats, which can be really subjective. Ask yourself, who would you rather have playing RF- Jason Heyward who grades out great every year defensively, or Castellanos? As a Cub fan, I would take Castellanos all day.
Exactly. Defense is nice, but offense>defense
Correct. 2 additional things are that no recent Detroit RF has had positive metrics, not even torii hunter. Not saying he’s a gold glove finalist but relax.. I don’t see one person insulting Bryce Harper saying he is only a DH. Also, those metrics can drastically be changed and improved… ask Kyle Shwarber and Corey Dickerson. Big improvements over the last year or 2.
Conventional wisdom is called “conventional wisdom” for a reason – it’s usually right! Teams needing a power bat will reconcile with Nick C’s weak D once they lose out on the higher-ranked power bats, Bryce & Manny. One top 5 prospect or two top 10’s, all of which might be in A or AA right now, can solve problems for both teams while not messing up a win-now team.
Unless the Tigers can get a legit top prospect or MLB-ready player, I don’t see any reason to trade him preseason. With nothing materialized, I’d say roll the dice on him staying healthy and playing well… they should be able to get way more value out of him midseason than now.
That’s what they said when they had JD Martinez, it didn’t work out well. Teams know the tigers are desperate and will lose with or without NC so they are waiting for the tigers to drop their price. I forsee them getting next to nothing at the trade deadline but at least he’ll be going to a contender at that point.
JDM was moved mid season because he had been injured, and they began the year trying to compete. They received more back than any other outfielder received. It was just a year with little demand at that spot. It didn’t work out, but not because they waited. You wouldn’t expect Boston to trade Boegarts before this season starts, but if everything were to fall apart and they move him at the deadline, there would be no talk of why didn’t they trade him before the season began.
If the Tigers don’t get offered better than the compensatory draft pick, they should keep him and sell tickets. If Manny and Bryce cant sigh with a draft pick attached, do you think Nick will get a contract?
Been a Tigers fan a long, long time. Nick is only 26. He is just coming into his own. Whomever signs him is going to enjoy watching him rake the ball for the next several years. I still hope somehow Detroit keeps him, but I fear Chris Illitch is the opposite of his father with spending cash.
Nick is bad on defence. VMart had a bad contract and was the DH. Now that he is gone Miggy can DH some and I’d like to see what Nick can do at 1B. My hunch is that Avila is holding out for a top 50 type and will eventually settle for a 50-100 prospect. But again, I’d prefer he stays. He’s said publically several times he wanted to stay with Det. Det made it clear he is not in their plans. I don’t blame him for being sour.
We’ll end up giving him away in July
He is making a good call even though he’s a DH
Another one dimensional player who doesn’t understand that his type is a dying breed in MLB. Learn to play defense, because your bat isn’t worthy of an everyday DH spot.