Tuesday Rockpile: Should the Rockies sign Willi Castro?

Last week, amid a flurry of Winter Meetings rumors, ESPN said Jorge Castillo reported this:

The Atlanta Braves, Pittsburgh Pirates and Colorado Rockies are among the teams interested in signing utility man Willi Castro, sources told ESPN. Castro, 28, was an All-Star in 2024 after a strong first half with the Minnesota Twins, but he regressed in the second half and into the 2025 season.

The switch-hitter slashed .245/.335/.407 with the Twins in 2025 before being sent to the Chicago Cubs at the trade deadline. He struggled in Chicago, hitting just .170 with one home run and a .485 OPS in 35 games and not having an at-bat in the postseason.

Advanced stats indicate that Castro also regressed defensively in 2025, dropping from zero to minus-9 above average, but he is a versatile defender who has played second base, third base, shortstop and all three outfield spots.

According to Paul DePodesta, president of Colorado Rockies baseball operations, the Rockies had met with a number of agents, so Castillo’s reporting could provide some insight into DePodesta’s plan for building the 2026 Rockies roster.

As for salary, MLB Trade Rumors predicts Castro will sign a two-year contract worth $14 million.

Signing Castro presents an intriguing opportunity worth playing out.

Can you start with some background?

A native of Puerto Rico, Castro signed with Cleveland as an international free agent in 2013 and made his Arizona League debut the following year. He worked his way through Cleveland’s minor league system until he traded to the Detroit Tigers in July 2018. The following year, he made his MLB debut against the Minnesota Twins on August 24, 2019.

Although Castro began his professional career as a shortstop, the Tigers began moving him to second base. He struggled a bit and spent much of his time shuttling between the Tigers and Triple-A Toledo. He was not registered at the end of the 2022 season.

In December of that year, Castro signed with the Twins and subsequently made their Opening Day roster. Castro was so effective that he was named a 2024 All-Star.

He remained with the Twins through the start of the 2025 season. Then, on July 31, in the middle of an MLB fire sale that consumed Target Field, Castro was traded to the Chicago Cubs. He had an uneven season, good in the first half but not in the second – as in a 122 OPS+ for the first half of the season compared to a 36 OPS+ in the second half.

He was not added to the Cubs’ postseason roster. When the season ended, he moved to free agency.

Here are his latest numbers: During his four seasons with the Tigers, Castro was worth -0.1 rWAR; for the Twins, that number was 4.5 rWAR; and then he fell to -0.5 rWAR with the Cubs.

Why would the Rockies be interested?

First of all, Castro is really a utility player. (I can already hear all of Orlando Arcia’s comments, and just listen to me.)

According to FanGraphs, he has played every defensive position except catcher and first base, although he has spent most of his time at SS, 2B and 3B. (FWIW, he’s a below-average defenseman.) DePodesta’s comment suggests the Rockies, too on the market for a 1B free agent. Castro is versatile, but first base isn’t a significant part of his portfolio, so he wouldn’t address that issue.

Secondly, he would bring experience to a very young team. The 2025 Rockies finished the season as the youngest team in the MLB, and they will still be young in 2026. They will need some experienced insight.

Start by considering the infield – because the Rockies would likely rarely use Castro in the outfield given their depth at that position. Currently, the Rockies appear to have the following infield:

All of these players are relatively young and only Tovar has significant MLB experience. Given the injuries Tovar suffered in 2025, it makes sense that the Rockies would likely want to give him a few more days off during the course of the season.

Castro could fill in all over the field and mentor young players; the Rockies will need both in 2026.

Third, there’s the fact that Castro is a switch hitter. His splits indicate he is good at both ends of the plate, which would give the Rockies added versatility.

Given where the Rockies are in their rebuild, i.e. trying to balance player development at the MLB level with fielding an improved team, signing a player like Willi Castro makes sense. Look, the 2026 Rockies won’t be good, but for a lot of reasons they need to be better than they have been.

Bringing in a player like Castro could help.

Can you tell us something interesting?

You can impress your friends the next time you play trivia.

Maybe. We just don’t know enough about what DePodesta president and general manager Josh Byrnes have in mind, but there are two open spots on the Rockies roster.

It appears DePodesta is focusing on building out the front office staff first before turning his attention to the Rockies’ 2026 roster.

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I found this an enlightening conversation.

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