H. Darr Beiser-USA TODAY
Nick Castellanos has turned into a household name around Major League Baseball and he has got an invitation to spring training with the Detroit Tigers. Will he make the big league roster? Well that’s yet to be determined.
The 20-year-old outfielder was named the sixth best prospect in the outfield by MLB.com after an impressive 2012 minor league campaign. Castellanos started off in Lakeland in Class-A and hit an outstanding .405 with 32 RBI’s in only 55 games.
He moved to Double-A Erie and played 79 games hitting .264 with 25 RBI’s but this was when he was making the transition to the outfield from third base. With Miguel Cabrera playing third on the big league roster this move was most likely made to get Castellanos to the majors faster.
During All-Star weekend Castellanos was invited to participate in the MLB Futures game where the best players from around the Minors play a game of their own. He took home the MVP award for the game with an impressive 3-for-4 effort with three RBI’s all three coming off of a massive home run over the centerfield wall at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City.
Castellanos is the future of the Tigers and I would hate to see him come up too fast. I can’t wait to see him during spring training down in Lakeland and I will be able to form a better opinion on him once I see him play.
I once heard Tampa Bay Rays manager Joe Maddon say that he likes to bring players up part way through the year so that there’s less pressure on them and they can focus on playing their game and I tend to agree.
I can’t wait to see Castellanos wearing the Old English D but I can wait until he is ready for the spotlight that is going to be shining on him once he gets there. What can’t be debated is his potential let’s just hope he can live up to the hype everyone is giving him.
