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Cubs seeking to trade Welington Castillo, still interested in David Ross
By David Miniel
In the wake of acquiring Miguel Montero from the Arizona Diamondbacks for two low-level pitching prospects, Yahoo Sports! Jeff Passan tweeted that the Cubs will be looking to trade Welington Castillo.
Castillo, 27, was later handed the primary catcher job after former NL Rookie of the Year winner Geovany Soto was dealt to the Texas Rangers along with starting pitcher Ryan Dempster in 2012. In 2013, Castillo picked up 107 starts behind the plate with a .988 fielding percentage while hitting .274/.349/.397 with a then career high eight home runs and 32 RBI’s.
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This year was a little bit of a let down for Castillo in the batters box as he battled consistency issues all year despite recording a career high in both home runs and RBI’s. Not only did he manage to launch a couple more long-balls and drive in a handful of runs, he struck out 102 times, which happens to be a career worst.
The decision to shop Castillo this off-season may come off as a bit of a surprise for some, but not for all. There are currently no teams who could have reached out to the Cubs regarding Castillo’s services, but don’t be surprised if the Chicago White Sox take a crack at acquiring him after picking up Jeff Samardzija from the Oakland Athletics.
As for David Ross, Chicago is reportedly still interested in pursuing him mainly because he’s one of free agent lefty Jon Lester‘s favorite catchers.
It’s definitely not the greatest investment on behalf of the front-office if they manage to pick him up since his offensive production has been minimal for the last couple seasons.
Other clubs interested in Ross include the Atlanta Braves, Boston Red Sox, and the San Diego Padres. So if the Cubs bring in another catcher such as Ross within the next 24 hours, Welington’s run with the team may officially come to an end.