Will the Philadelphia Phillies trade Nick Castellanos?
This may come as a surprise to you, especially with the All-Star year that Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Nick Castellanos just had, but he boasted an impressive .272/.311/.476 slash line with 29 home runs and 106 RBIs. It was a much-needed bounce-back year and helped make this Phillies lineup even more dangerous.
Similar to last year, when the city needed him most, he flat-out sucked and forgot how to hit a baseball. He tore it up against the Atlanta Braves, being the first player to hit two home runs in two different games in the same series while boasting an insane 1.796 OPS during that time.
He seemed like the hottest hitter on the planet and fans were hoping it would carry over into the NLCS. But the exact opposite happened with Castellanos going 1-for-24 against the Arizona D-Backs while looking like a minor leaguer.
His approach was horrible every single at-bat, and he looked like he was guessing for every pitch. It was difficult to watch and he, more or less, became an automatic out.
It was frustrating to see how quickly it could all go wrong for him, but it seems like frustration is starting to be shared as reports have surfaced that the Phillies could look to trade Castellanos. It seems like a crazy idea of the jump but it’s not that crazy the more you think about it.
Castellanos is being paid a lot of money–and part of why you give them all that money is so that they can perform when the lights are brightest, something Castellanos has failed to do in back-to-back postseasons now.
The Phillies are in their window right now, so if Castellanos wants to continue to be inconsistent and not show up in the biggest moments, I don’t think it’s crazy to move on from him.
Guys like Teoscar Hernandez and Jorge Soler will be available and could be much cheaper alternatives that won’t be as horrible come playoff time. The move would allow them to use the $20 million owed to Castellanos over the next three years to find his replacement.
I know this sounds like the ramblings of a bitter and angry fan, but at what point is enough enough? It’s even like it’s been little slumps here and there. In back-to-back years now, Nick Castellanos has found a way to be the worst hitter in a playoff series.
I’m sorry but if that’s something that’s starting to become a pattern, I don’t want you making $20 million a year. May sound harsh, but that money could be used to address many other problems with this Phillies team.
I do like Nick so it would be sad to see him go. But on the other hand, he did this to himself, should a trade happen. The inconsistencies at some point become too much to deal with. Now we just see if this NLCS was the last straw.
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