Yankees ink former Reds catcher Wilkin Castillo

Not known by most, catcher Wilkin Castillo is the newest member of the Yankees organization. Castillo was acquired from the Long Island Ducks of the Atlantic League, one of the premier independent leagues in the country.

After signing with the Yankees, Wilkin Castillo is expected to join Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, a team for which he has previously played for. Last season, Castillo played 45 games with the RailRiders before being granted free agency in November of 2017.

Castillo has 22 games worth of major league experience, all with the Cincinnati Reds during the 2008-2009 seasons. Since then, Castillo has roamed the abyss that is minor league baseball, including playing in Mexico as well as the Dominican Winter League, perennially.

Although his at-bats in MLB have been limited, Castillo has a career batting average of .314 but has never caught a single big league inning. Instead, the Reds used the usual catcher as an outfielder, in addition to seeing time as a second baseman.

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Castillo has been thrown around the diamond throughout his career, both in the minors and majors. In fact, in all levels of his professional career, Castillo has played every position except centerfield and pitcher.

This season, Castillo found himself playing for the Long Island Ducks where he saw action in 20 games while logging 70 at-bats. With the Ducks, Castillo hit .314 with two home runs and just 11 strikeouts.

However, you shouldn’t think the soon to be 34-year-old is going to be joining the big league club to help them into the playoffs. Castillo will most likely never reach the big league level again.

Past his prime, Castillo looks to be an organizational depth filler, especially with his utility abilities, as both the Yankees Triple-A and Double-A teams already have two catchers on their rosters.

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Not to mention the Yanks have two catchers of their own, Gary Sanchez and Austin Romine; both of whom the club appears to be more than comfortable with behind the plate and at the dish.