Aaron Boone Praises Luis Castillo as Trade Deadline Rumors Swirl
NEW YORK — The Yankees will face Reds starting pitcher Luis Castillo on Thursday night in the rubber match of a three-game set at Yankee Stadium.
On paper, this is nothing more than a challenging matchup against an opposing club's ace, a rare opportunity to go to battle against Castillo in interleague play.
When you factor in New York's reported interest in acquiring Castillo before next month's trade deadline, however, Thursday night becomes a little more meaningful.
New York has been connected to Castillo in the past. Most recently, the New York Post's Jon Heyman reported that the Yankees are among the many teams that like Castillo. It won't be easy to get him, though. Cincinnati is requesting a top prospect in return, per Heyman.
Whether general manager Brian Cashman ends up pursuing a deal with Cincinnati or not, Yankees manager Aaron Boone is enamored with Castillo and his abilities on the mound.
"Well, he's got a great changeup," Boone said on Wednesday afternoon. "He has just great stuff overall, he's one of the premier pitchers out there and certainly been the Reds ace for the last few years. He's a special talent with a really special changeup."
On Thursday, Boone's club will have their hands full trying to put runs on the board against Castillo, a starter with a track record worthy of those compliments. The right-hander has a 2.92 ERA in 12 starts this season, the best year of his career so far and enough to earn a trip to the All-Star Game (the second of his six-year career).
As much as New York's rotation has been reliable and productive all season long—Yankees starters have the third-best ERA (3.24) in baseball entering play on Thursday—they've faced some adversity of late, a cause for concern with the second half of the season and an eventual postseason run looming.
Jameson Taillon has a 6.81 ERA in his last seven outings, Nestor Cortes has never been a starter for a full season at this level (he's about to eclipse his career-high innings total and we're not at the All-Star break yet) and Luis Severino had an injury scare on Wednesday night (you have to keep an eye on his workload as well in his first season back from Tommy John surgery).
New York can always use their internal options as reinforcements. Domingo Germán is set to return from the injured list (right shoulder impingement syndrome) while JP Sears and Clarke Schmidt have pitched well in the big leagues, stretching out with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in case starts are needed.
There will be other cheaper alternatives available prior to the deadline as well.
If Boone, Cashman and the Yankees really do like Castillo, though, Thursday night gives them a chance to watch him pitch in the Bronx, envisioning what it would look like if he swapped his Reds uniform for pinstripes.
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