ESPN Links Braves to All-Star Utility Man Among Winter Meetings Rumors

The Atlanta Braves have been reported to be checking on another utility option with experience at shortstop

The 2024 All-Star experienced a drop off in 2025 | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Some buzz is starting to creep through for the Atlanta Braves during the Winter Meetings. According to ESPN's Jorge Castro, they're among the three teams that are interested in utility man Willi Castro.

The Pittsburgh Pirates and the Colorado Rockies are the other two teams reportedly checking in on him. Castro is coming off a 2025 season split between the Minnesota Twins and the Chicago Cubs. He was one of the players the Twins sent off during their selling spree at the deadline last season.

It was a bit of a polarizing season for the 2024 All-Star. While he put up some respectable numbers at the plate in Minnesota, he struggled over in Chicago. His .743 OPS in 86 games with the Twins dropped to .485 in 34 games with the Cubs. Another key issue is that his defense experienced an overall drop off.

A takeaway right now is that the team is looking at all of their options. Ha-Seong Kim is still out there for now. Mauricio Dubon and Vidal Brujan are options currently on the team. However, any opportunity to explore a potential boost, in any fashion, to the shortstop position is understandable.

It's one of the few places they can. The DH spot is ruled out for now in favor of rotating it among multiple players. The other positions are essentially on lock. Looking at options who can play shortstop is understandable.

Spotrac projects his value to be just north of $10 million and worth a multi-year contract. That isn't a deal that the Braves should consider signing. It's not a price tag that makes him worth trying over Dubon or Brujan. They would be sacrificing big-time defense for someone with a similar bat.

Brujan doesn't have a strong history at shortstop, but he played it pretty cleanly in a small sample size with Atlanta. Shortstop isn't Dubon's best position, but he's a gold glove winner nonetheless.

Another in-house option that makes sense is Nacho Alvarez. He had a strong showing in the Arizona Fall League after getting his first serious shot at major league action. He put on a strong showing at third base, and shortstop was one of his primary positions in the minor leagues.

If they're going to make the move, it needs to be a genuine upgrade. Perhaps he's a quick fix and provides a good enough option at shortstop. However, this is one of those times where the Braves should genuinely be careful with the type of money they're willing to spend. They still need to invest in the pitching side, and they would be better off putting money toward that if not a bona fide shortstop.