Detroit Tigers: Nicholas Castellanos comments speak to front office issues
By Tyler Kotila
The Detroit Tigers have not played a game with Nicholas Castellanos in their lineup since the 2019 season. In fact, during the 2019 season, the team parted ways with the outfielder and former first-round pick in a trade deadline deal.
Castellanos and the Detroit Tigers did not quite see eye-to-eye, and the front office decided that a trade was the best option. Castellanos was dealt to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for Alex Lange and Paul Richan.
It’s not the best outcome as Lange’s upside is mostly that of a bullpen guy, and Richan is still a ways away from the big leagues. It seems like the Tigers did not view Castellanos as a part of their long-term plans, and some recent comments from Castellanos seem to confirm this.
In a recent article($$) from the Detroit Free Press, Castellanos talked about there being some ongoing issues, and the decision to explore trades sort of made things overflow. The Tigers did not feel that Castellanos was a player to build around. While he may not have fit the timeline super well, he definitely could have been a player who was kept around.
The Tigers seemingly made a mistake by opting to get rid of Castellanos. Some of the issues the two sides had could have been mended with a contract that proved the front office believed in him, but it’s known that Christopher Illitch is ill-suited to cut a check.
Nicholas Castellanos being traded is another Detroit Tigers mistake.
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Whether or not to trade Castellanos may not have had much of a change in the Tigers rebuild, but the front office and ownership needed a change.
While there is not a new general manager calling the shots, a recent promotion changes some things.
Sam Menzin, one of Al Avila’s right-hand guys, has moved into a vice president/assistant general manager role.
He’s been around in recent years and is going to be around for some time; he’s someone who may wind up in Avila’s chair one day.
Two years after Castellanos was dealt, his comments about the organization come out.
For those fans who remember, Castellanos was shifted around due to defensive issues and had expressed some displeasure with the organization during his time here.
Given Avila’s decision and knowing his history with poor trades, it should just be frustrating to hear things like this. Even though it was known that the relationship with Castellanos was on the fritz, Avila has made some poor choices because certain players “cannot be built around,” and those have backfired several times.
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Not to say that the Tigers would be a World Series contender without some of these moves being made, but parting ways with someone like Castellanos sucks when he could easily be patrolling the outfield as a veteran as the team comes out of the rebuild in the coming seasons.