What Diego A. Castillo Got Out Of His Brief Stint With the Twins

It was only a matter of time before St. Paul Saints infielder Diego A. Castillo would return to the big leagues. However, it came at a cost to the Minnesota Twins infield, losing José Miranda and Carlos Correa to injuries during the final weekend before the All-Star Break.

Castillo joined the Twins on short notice as the Saints were on the road facing off against the Louisville Bats.

“We were getting ready for the game, and Toby [Gardenhire] called me to the office,” said Castillo. “He just told me they need me up there, and I got to go as soon as possible. I had no time for anything, just grab my things from the hotel and drive to the airport.”

When Castillo arrived in San Francisco early Sunday morning, he knew he’d be in the lineup for the series finale. Twins manager Rocco Baldelli had him hitting seventh and playing third base, and he’d go 0-for-2 with a walk in his Twins debut.

Fortunately for Castillo, he wouldn’t have a repeat experience from last season when he was with the Arizona Diamondbacks organization last year. The D-Backs only called him up briefly on July 31 last year as a pinch hitter and then optioned him down the next day.

A day in the majors is still a day in the majors, but Castillo was happier to have much more than one with the Twins in July. On top of that, he accumulated service time while still being on the active roster over the All-Star Break.

Castillo secured three additional games with the Twins this year, appearing in the home opener against the Milwaukee Brewers and two of the three games against the Philadelphia Phillies. In eight plate appearances, Castillo went 2-for-6 with a couple of walks. In the short time Castillo spent with the Twins, he proved his performance in Triple-A had been worth the callup.

“That’s why we work a lot here in Triple-A,” said Castillo. “We work a lot every day. We get ready to play every single day and be ready for whenever they need me up there, and I know I’m going to do a really good job because I’m prepared for that.”

“It was good, it was awesome,” said Saints manager Toby Gardenhire on Castillo’s short performance with the Twins. “He’s been up there, he’s done it, he’s a real professional, and he knows what he’s doing. He does everything for you on the field, so it was good for him to get up there and perform well for the Twins.”

Castillo’s time in the Twins clubhouse introduced him to many new teammates because he spent Spring Training with the Phillies and Baltimore Orioles. As Castillo recalled, his new teammates gave him a warm welcome that helped him gain the confidence to perform at a high level with them.

“Christian Vázquez, it was my first time talking to him,” Castillo recalled. “Carlos Correa, I talked to him playing against him, but never in the same clubhouse. I had [Chris] Paddack right next to me in the locker room, Paddack had said, ‘Hey, be ready. I’m going to give you some ground balls.’ Because he was pitching that first day.”

Castillo has played in nine games since being DFA’d by the Twins and accepting an outright assignment back to the Saints. Over those nine games, he’s had a triple slash of .273/.368/.424, a .793 OPS, has walked four times, and struck out five. However, Castillo has had no homers or runs batted in in those nine games. He and Saints hitting coach Shawn Schlechter have been working on regaining some power over the last two weeks.

“I think he’s just trying to be a little bit more consistent,” said Schlechter. “The first version we saw earlier this season of him was he controlled the zone. [Castillo] made consistent contact, and he did some damage. And he did that over the last month and a half with us, he just wasn’t creating as many extra bases with his swing. Right now, we're just trying to fine-tune that and get it back to leveraging the baseball and being able to impact it."

“That’s the system,” said Castillo. “That’s how baseball works. I don’t feel bad for it, I’m ready to play in the big leagues whenever they need me, and I came back here because I feel like I get so much better at defense and hitting within this organization.”

Castillo’s focus for the remainder of the season with the Saints is getting his swing back to deliver in high-impact opportunities. Once more power returns for him, there’s hope the Twins could use Castillo as rosters expand in September.

“It’s amazing, man, being in the big leagues, whatever the time is one day or 10 years, it’s always really good. Every time they call me up, I’m ready to go.”