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New Yankees pitcher Miguel Castro looks stunningly different after Mets trade

Adam Weinrib
Adam Weinrib

Yanks Go Yard

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - SEPTEMBER 26: Miguel Castro #50 of the New York Mets throws a pitch against the Milwaukee Brewers against at American Family Field on September 26, 2021 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Brewers defeated the Mets 8-4. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images)

I know, I know, you want to call us out for clickbait exaggeration here. You want to comment, “STUNNINGLY different?! I’m NOT stunned and you’re a LIAR. Go Yankees!” I know you do. Your itchy fingers are on the trigger.

And all I can say is … I recommend you scroll down and check out the before/after. Then, tell me you’re not stunned.

When the Yankees dealt Joely Rodriguez to the Mets in exchange for sinker specialist Miguel Castro on Sunday afternoon, the discourse was split into two camps. One party was excited to be adding another erratic guy with a turbo sinker who gets ground balls (Clay Holmes 2.0, and the fourth member of the top 30 relievers in 2021 ground ball rate to be joining the Yankees’ bullpen, alongside Holmes, Jonathan Loaisiga, and Wandy Peralta).

The other party? They were excited to see what Castro would look like beardless. But they probably hadn’t considered he would also soon be … dreadless, just like Andrew McCutchen.

Say what you will about the Yankees’ policy. Outdated, not for the modern game, and nobody’s really in favor of it.

This, though, is astounding.

https://twitter.com/TheGameDayMLB/status/1510993553937338372?s=20&t=dwRk-W5sjfvxlnMtqDBeIQ

Yankees reliever Miguel Castro looks completely different

First off, that blue-and-orange glove has got to go. Luckily, according to ESPN’s Marly Rivera, that’s being handled, and Castro will be given some new webbing by end of day Monday.

Maybe just ship it to the Bronx, at this point, though? He’s coming north. Supply chain stuff. Don’t make this more complicated than it has to be.

And, secondly, without the long locks — Miguel, be careful, man. If you went too short on the hair and left some bare skin, that mesh spring training cap could leave you with a burn/tan the likes of which you’ll never be able to unsee.

Want a side-by-side view of the New and Old Miguel? Of course you do.

Hopefully, this transformation also includes a Matt Blake-led maximization of Castro’s unique talents, from controlling the sinker and dotting the corners to using change-of-pace to keep hitters guessing.

Castro provides upside that Rodriguez, while effective, can’t really match as “just another lefty specialist” in a bullpen full of ’em.

Surprisingly … Castro was already more effective against lefties in 2021 than Rodriguez was, anyway. Hopefully, he didn’t lose those reverse splits when he chopped off the locks.

Adam Weinrib

Adam Weinrib

Adam Weinrib is a Content Director on the FanSided network, and has been the co-editor at Yanks Go Yard for 6 years. He also co-hosts The Baseball Insiders Podcast thrice weekly, alongside FanSided MLB insider Robert Murray, as well as the Yanks Go Yard Podcast. Previously, he was a Senior Editor at 12up.com, and has been covering MLB and NFL for 10 years. He was also a headline and features contributor at ClickHole and Onion Sports, as well as the Associate Producer of the ESPN 30 for 30 film "Believeland". An avowed fan of the New York sports teams -- specifically the Yankees -- as well as the North Carolina Tar Heels, you can find Adam complaining mid-game on Twitter, as well as on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn if the game goes really poorly.