11-27-2009, 11:32 AM
<!--quoteo-->QUOTE <!--quotec-->Chicago Cubs aren't going to rush Starlin Castro
But it's no secret 19-year-old shortstop is on the fast track
By Paul Sullivan Tribune reporter
November 27, 2009
If the Cubs start the 2010 season with Starlin Castro at shortstop, it won't be without the prodding of hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo.
Castro isn't on the 40-man roster, but he will get a spring training invite and an opportunity to break camp with the Cubs if he has an exceptional spring.
It's a long shot, considering Castro began the season in Class A last April and doesn't turn 20 until March 24. But the Cubs are so sold on his future that they already have told incumbent shortstop Ryan Theriot he might move to second base in the not-so-distant future.
How will the Cubs weigh the decision on whether Castro is ready?
By asking their newly designated "hitting guru."
"Rudy has a great track record with hitters, and you have a young man here who has had only six to eight weeks in Double A," general manager Jim Hendry said. "So you want to make sure everybody feels he has enough experience to make the jump.
"And once he gets here, you want to let him go. You don't want to put expectations on him, that he has to be here by a certain day, that it has to be Opening Day or by the All-Star break. You let him dictate when he's ready by the way he plays, the way he carries himself and how he adjusts. No one in house is worried about it because Theriot is a real good player and we're certainly prepared to play without (Castro), with Ryan coming back after a couple of successful years."
Cubs fans have learned the hard way not to fall in love with highly touted prospects after the rise and fall of center fielders Corey Patterson and Felix Pie.
Castro was a relative unknown a year ago, but suddenly he's the focus of the future.
Castro, who finished sixth in the Arizona Fall League with a .376 average, was named the team's top prospect last week by Baseball America. That put him above first-round draft picks Brett Jackson (ranked No. 2), Josh Vitters (No. 3), Andrew Cashner (No. 4) and Tyler Colvin, who did not even make the top 10.
Over the last eight months, Castro has gone from unheralded to untouchable. The Cubs like him so much, it's believed they will refuse to discuss him in any offseason trade talk, even for a hot commodity such as Tigers center fielder Curtis Granderson. Hendry, Jaramillo and manager Lou Piniella are eager to see what Castro can do in Cactus League play in March, when media and fan scrutiny is certain to be magnified.
"When you get to the Double-A level and you go to the fall league and you play like that, you're on the right kind of track," Hendry said. "We certainly want to get him the extra work in major league camp. Let's all see where he's at by the beginning stages of camp and at the end. He's turning 20, so he's obviously on a very fast track."
In his first year above Rookie ball, Castro hit a combined .299 at Daytona, the Cubs' high Class A team, and Double-A Tennessee. He finished with three home runs, 23 doubles, 49 RBIs and a .342 on-base percentage.
But with only 111 at-bats in Double A, is Castro ready for the big jump?
Experience may work against him, but some teams are bringing up prospects they deem ready at a quicker-than-usual pace, as evidenced by the comet-like ascensions of the White Sox's Gordon Beckham and the Rays' Evan Longoria. The Sox called up Beckham, the No. 8 pick of the 2008 draft, after only 205 combined at-bats at Class A and Double A and 28 at Triple-A Charlotte.
Hendry agreed the trend is growing, citing the reduction of college baseball scholarships and improved scouting in places such as the Dominican Republic and Venezuela. The best players are identified earlier and separate themselves from the pack faster, Hendry said.
"Beckham at a young age, with the maturity level he has shown, his (success) certainly bodes well for not only himself, but for others," he said. "It shows the outstanding guys can do it, and make it in a short period of time."
The Cubs don't want to appear as if they're rushing Castro, who still needs to fill out his 6-foot-1, 175-pound frame. And Hendry doesn't want his confidence in the kid to be interpreted as a lack of faith in Theriot, who had a disappointing finish to an otherwise strong season, hitting .240 over the final month to finish at .284.
Hendry has spoken to Theriot about his future.
"Ryan feels like if he has to change positions and move to second base, he would have no problems," Hendry said. "He has made it no secret he loves the Cubs and wants to stay.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseb...0,4875326.story
But it's no secret 19-year-old shortstop is on the fast track
By Paul Sullivan Tribune reporter
November 27, 2009
If the Cubs start the 2010 season with Starlin Castro at shortstop, it won't be without the prodding of hitting coach Rudy Jaramillo.
Castro isn't on the 40-man roster, but he will get a spring training invite and an opportunity to break camp with the Cubs if he has an exceptional spring.
It's a long shot, considering Castro began the season in Class A last April and doesn't turn 20 until March 24. But the Cubs are so sold on his future that they already have told incumbent shortstop Ryan Theriot he might move to second base in the not-so-distant future.
How will the Cubs weigh the decision on whether Castro is ready?
By asking their newly designated "hitting guru."
"Rudy has a great track record with hitters, and you have a young man here who has had only six to eight weeks in Double A," general manager Jim Hendry said. "So you want to make sure everybody feels he has enough experience to make the jump.
"And once he gets here, you want to let him go. You don't want to put expectations on him, that he has to be here by a certain day, that it has to be Opening Day or by the All-Star break. You let him dictate when he's ready by the way he plays, the way he carries himself and how he adjusts. No one in house is worried about it because Theriot is a real good player and we're certainly prepared to play without (Castro), with Ryan coming back after a couple of successful years."
Cubs fans have learned the hard way not to fall in love with highly touted prospects after the rise and fall of center fielders Corey Patterson and Felix Pie.
Castro was a relative unknown a year ago, but suddenly he's the focus of the future.
Castro, who finished sixth in the Arizona Fall League with a .376 average, was named the team's top prospect last week by Baseball America. That put him above first-round draft picks Brett Jackson (ranked No. 2), Josh Vitters (No. 3), Andrew Cashner (No. 4) and Tyler Colvin, who did not even make the top 10.
Over the last eight months, Castro has gone from unheralded to untouchable. The Cubs like him so much, it's believed they will refuse to discuss him in any offseason trade talk, even for a hot commodity such as Tigers center fielder Curtis Granderson. Hendry, Jaramillo and manager Lou Piniella are eager to see what Castro can do in Cactus League play in March, when media and fan scrutiny is certain to be magnified.
"When you get to the Double-A level and you go to the fall league and you play like that, you're on the right kind of track," Hendry said. "We certainly want to get him the extra work in major league camp. Let's all see where he's at by the beginning stages of camp and at the end. He's turning 20, so he's obviously on a very fast track."
In his first year above Rookie ball, Castro hit a combined .299 at Daytona, the Cubs' high Class A team, and Double-A Tennessee. He finished with three home runs, 23 doubles, 49 RBIs and a .342 on-base percentage.
But with only 111 at-bats in Double A, is Castro ready for the big jump?
Experience may work against him, but some teams are bringing up prospects they deem ready at a quicker-than-usual pace, as evidenced by the comet-like ascensions of the White Sox's Gordon Beckham and the Rays' Evan Longoria. The Sox called up Beckham, the No. 8 pick of the 2008 draft, after only 205 combined at-bats at Class A and Double A and 28 at Triple-A Charlotte.
Hendry agreed the trend is growing, citing the reduction of college baseball scholarships and improved scouting in places such as the Dominican Republic and Venezuela. The best players are identified earlier and separate themselves from the pack faster, Hendry said.
"Beckham at a young age, with the maturity level he has shown, his (success) certainly bodes well for not only himself, but for others," he said. "It shows the outstanding guys can do it, and make it in a short period of time."
The Cubs don't want to appear as if they're rushing Castro, who still needs to fill out his 6-foot-1, 175-pound frame. And Hendry doesn't want his confidence in the kid to be interpreted as a lack of faith in Theriot, who had a disappointing finish to an otherwise strong season, hitting .240 over the final month to finish at .284.
Hendry has spoken to Theriot about his future.
"Ryan feels like if he has to change positions and move to second base, he would have no problems," Hendry said. "He has made it no secret he loves the Cubs and wants to stay.<!--QuoteEnd--><!--QuoteEEnd-->
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseb...0,4875326.story