Adrian Del Castillo’s Pro Journey With D-backs Nears Destination
For most of 2021, hitting did not come easy for catcher Adrian Del Castillo.
He entered his junior year at Miami regarded as one of the best college bats in the country, but he struggled, slipped to the supplemental second round and then posted mediocre numbers as a pro.
Looking back, the 24-year-old Del Castillo wouldn’t have wanted it any other way.
“I think that’s probably the best thing that ever happened to me,” Del Castillo said. “It’s going to happen to anybody, even the best players in the world. They’ve got to go through a certain struggling phase.
“It’s the journey of getting it back that’s the most important.”
Those struggles feel likes ages ago with the way Del Castillo has swung the bat this year for Triple-A Reno. Through 77 games, he hit .326/.399/.602 with 16 home runs and 30 doubles.
Diamondbacks director of minor league hitting Drew Hedman noted that Del Castillo’s improvement has been gradual and steady over the past few seasons. His hard-hit rate and max exit velocity have increased each year.
“He’s capable of hitting his top end higher, but he’s doing it so much more consistently,” Hedman said.
Del Castillo’s rate of batted balls hit 95 mph or harder has increased from 29% in 2022 to 42% in 2023 to 49% this season.
“Those are usually hits,” Hedman said.
Del Castillo said playing winter ball in Puerto Rico helped, but he seemed to believe his success this year is mostly some combination of experience and confidence. He thinks he was putting too much pressure on himself in his draft year or maybe trying to do too much.
“If anything happens like that now,” he said, “I know how to reset and go back to what I need to do.”
D-backs officials say Del Castillo’s defense also has improved, though most believe he will always be an offensive-minded backstop.
“Defensively, he’s done a good job,” D-backs GM Mike Hazen said. “He needs to improve some of the throwing stuff and blocking. I think he’s done a good job receiving.”
SNAKE BITES
- The D-backs’ decision to cut ties with veteran catcher Tucker Barnhart was informed somewhat by Del Castillo’s development. He likely will be the next catcher up if Arizona needs catching reinforcement.
