*Photo from Red Reporter*
Seeing a chance to make a statement, the Seattle Mariners pounced. The Mariners have acquired RHP Luis Castillo from the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for SS Noelvi Marte, SS/2B Edwin Arroyo, and RHP's Andrew Moore and Levi Stoudt, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN. The deal has been confirmed.
Mariners manager Scott Servais said of landing Castillo that "He's one of the best pitchers in the game. Really established himself as a dominant starter in the National League. We've got a couple of his former teammates with us, they know him very well and they speak very highly of his stuff, his competitiveness."
So far with the Reds this season, Castillo has a 4-4 record with a 2.86 ERA and 1.07 WHIP, punching out 90 hitters while walking 28 in 85 innings pitched across 14 starts. Castillo represented the Reds at the 2022 All Star game in Los Angeles a few weeks ago for the second time in his career.
In his 6 seasons in the league, all with the Reds, Castillo has a 44-53 record with a 3.62 ERA and 1.20 WHIP, fanning 860 hitters in 792 1/3 innings, making 137 starts. He has made one postseason start, coming in the 2020 NL Wild Card round against the Atlanta Braves, allowing one run in 5 1/3 innings.
Castillo said of his time in Cincinnati that "It's been a beautiful experience. The personnel, the team, everyone that I've been able to make some type of connection with. To have my name in fans' mouths and have them cheering me on and say things about me, it's something that I'll treasure forever. I won't forget about that."
The big piece of the return for the Reds is Marte, the top ranked prospect in the Mariners system. So far this season with High A Everett, he has a .275 batting average with 15 home runs and 55 RBI's, stealing 13 bases in 85 games. Marte is the 18th overall prospect according to MLB Pipeline.
Another part of the return is Arroyo, a middle infielder who is the 3rd ranked prospect in the Mariners system and 93rd overall by MLB Pipeline, even though he's only 18. With Low A Modesto this season, Arroyo has a .316 batting average with 13 home runs and 67 RBI's in 87 games, stealing 21 bases as well.
Another ranked prospect heading to Cincinnati is Stoudt, who is the 5th ranked prospect in the Mariners system. With Double A Arkansas this season, Stoudt has a 6-6 record with a 5.28 ERA and 1.31 WHIP, throwing 87 innings in 18 starts for Arkansas.
The final part of the return is Moore, who is an unranked prospect after being selected in the 14th round of the 2021 MLB Draft. With Low A Modesto this season, Moore has a 2-1 record with a 1.29 WHIP and 1.95 ERA in 32 1/3 innings across 25 relief appearances.
Reds GM Nick Krall said of parting with Castillo that "“Luis is one of the nicest guys I’ve ever come across in this clubhouse. Great guy, great pitcher. Family man. Just really great to have him here for as long as we did. But at the end of the day, we had to make ourselves better for the long haul. We felt these four players are going to help us do that."
The bidding war for Castillo was widespread, with 10-15 teams checking in on his availability. In the end, he's heading to the Mariners, joining a starting rotation that includes Robbie Ray, Logan Gilbert, Marco Gonzales, and Chris Flexen, plus rookie George Kirby.
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