Will Starlin Castro Remain a New York Yankee in 2018?

After a shaky postseason, Starlin Castro could be on the move this offseason. Are the New York Yankees ready to make room for the top prospect in baseball Gleyber Torres?

If the New York Yankees are truly ready to take the next step in 2018 and get to the World Series, they need to make a few tweaks to their roster, starting with Starlin Castro.

Todd Frazier likely won’t be back, while Chase Headley and Jacoby Ellsbury will undoubtedly be shopped around the league over the course of the offseason.

One name that should be shopped around along with Headley and Ellsbury is Castro. The second baseman, despite a few big hits in the ALCS, could be out of pinstripes before March after an injury-riddled season and a disastrous postseason in the field.

It’s no secret that the New York Yankees are trying to cut their payroll significantly in order to make a big splash in free agency come 2019.

With Masahiro Tanaka likely to opt out of the remaining three years and $67 million of his deal and the possibility of C.C. Sabathia signing a one-year deal with the team, the Yankees will need to lower their payroll somehow.

Starlin Castro has two years and roughly $22 million left on his current deal, according to Spotrac. It’s feasible for the Yankees to move him and free up some salary considering the depth of New York’s farm system and the fact that they have other, more pressing, needs.

Gleyber Torres, the consensus top prospect in baseball, should be ready to go for spring training and could easily slide into that second base role at a much cheaper price. His fielding and speed are better than Castro’s and he has the potential to be just as good a hitter as a healthy Castro can be.

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In 112 games in 2017, Starlin Castro had 133 hits, 16 of which were home runs, with 63 RBI. Gleyber Torres, with Trenton (AA) and Scranton Wilkes-Barre (AAA), had 58 hits with seven home runs and 34 RBI in less than half of the games Castro played in (53).

If Torres simply doubled the number of games he played in the minors this season, his numbers would project to 116 hits, 14 home runs, and 68 RBI.

These projections are near identical to Castro’s numbers in slightly fewer games, showing that the Yankees would barely miss him if Torres were to take his place.

Moving Castro is also a great way for the New York Yankees to free up some salary to sign a free agent this offseason.

High on the team’s list should be a left-handed reliever to complement Aroldis Chapman in a bullpen loaded with talented right-handers.

Philadelphia Phillies reliever Kevin Siegrist is a name that comes to mind. In 2017, Siegrist struck out 43 batters in 39 innings with a 1.55 WHIP.

Jake McGee of the Colorado Rockies is another option the Yankees could consider. He struck out 58 batters in 57 innings this season and pitched to a 3.61 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP.

Although it’s unlikely, Boston’s Fernando Abad is another pitcher the Yankees could sign with some of the money they’d save from dealing Castro. Abad struck out 37 batters in 43 innings with a 3.30 ERA.

McGee and Abad are both 31 years old, while Siegrist is 28, meaning all three could be inked to more than one-year deals.

Starlin Castro’s uncertain future will be determined by what the New York Yankees want to do with Gleyber Torres next season.

If they trade Chase Headley and don’t re-sign Todd Frazier, then there’s no doubt they’ll have Torres play third base and keep Castro at second.

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The most important thing to remember here is that Castro is expendable in this situation. He’s a solid player, but one whose production could be replicated by the top prospect in baseball.

Time will tell, but don’t be surprised if the middle infield for the New York Yankees looks a little different in Tampa this spring.

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