Castillo has several links to the Phillies clubhouse. In 2009, he was teammates with utility man Wilson Valdez, who right now is the front-runner to start in place of Utley. He said he is friends with third baseman Placido Polanco, who, like Castillo, hails from the Dominican Republic, makes his offseason home in South Florida and is represented by Sam and Seth Levinson. Over the weekend, backup catcher Brian Schneider spoke in glowing terms about his experience as Castillo's teammate with the Mets in 2008 and 2009, saying that the veteran infielder would be a great fit for the clubhouse and that a fresh start might be what he needed.
Castillo blames late arrival to Phillies camp on 'miscommunication'
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The Phillies' primary concern is Castillo's performance on the field. While scouts who have watched him play contend that a loss of foot speed has affected his defensive range and his offense, they aren't the ones scrambling to compensate for the loss of a second baseman who hit .284 with an .890 on-base plus slugging percentage and 80 home runs while playing 430 games of dependable defense over the last 3 years. Yesterday, Amaro again said he has seen little progress in Utley, who is attempting to avoid surgery for what has been diagnosed as patellar tendinitis, chondromalacia and bone inflammation in his right knee.
Even at his peak, the light-hitting Castillo would not fill the void. But if he can give the Phillies anything close to his .290 career average and .368 career OBP, he will help.
"I have an opportunity to show I can still play," he said. "That's why I'm here, and that's what I want to do." *
For more Phillies coverage and opinion, read David Murphy's blog, High Cheese, at www.philly.com/HighCheese. Follow him on Twitter at
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